Love and Monsters
by SheeWolf85
Summary: AU where monsters were never trapped. History of slavery and now uncertain freedom. Magical monsters are said to be extinct, their king and queen long dead and their prince-no one knows where he is. Sans and his friends hide their magic well, and Frisk helps keep their secret. What happens when the government finds out about Sans' magic? Frans, pls read warnings in prologue.
1. Prologue

A/N: Welcome to my new story! This is one that is very near and dear to my heart. I have a lot of it written already. I hope to update about once a week, so we'll see how that goes.

A few little things to start out with, for those of you who read the author's notes: This story takes place in a completely different AU in which there was no Underground. Monsters were never trapped. The prologue will give you the background you need, and Ch1 will set up a bit more info, including Sans and Frisk meeting.

Second: This is a slow burner. For those of you who want sexin' up front, perhaps check out my other story, Anatomy? It's just a 3-parter, and I'm totally, shamelessly self-promoting.

Third: Love, in this story, does not mean Level of Violence. It just means love.

Fourth, and final: This story is rated M for a few reasons. I really enjoy the idea of bad-mouthed guys, so Sans doesn't shy away from potty talk. There's language, violence, some minor gore, mentions of rape, and consensual sex. The gore and rape appear in the same chapter, and I'll put a nice, heavy warning on that one for the triggered souls and squeamish stomachs out there. PTA Sans also rears his ugly (beautiful?) head because my daughter inspired me to do so. I'm not sorry.

With that, thank you for giving this story a chance. I hope you enjoy it. Also, I'm on Twitter; sheewolf85 - come chat!

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LOVE AND MONSTERS

PROLOGUE

"Tell me again, Mommy!" the little girl begged excitedly. Her eyes were wide with hopeful anticipation of hearing her most beloved story yet again. In her opinion, nobody told it better than her mother.

Tori laughed. "Oh, Frisk. You've heard it a million times already—and that's just this week!" She nudged the little girl, pushing her gently toward her bed. "Don't you want to hear a different story? What if I were to read a book instead?"

Frisk scrunched up her nose. "No books. I want your story."

Tori smiled. "It's not my story, swee—"

"I know, I know," Frisk moaned. "It's Queen Toriel's story. But you were named after her, so it's kinda your story, too. Please, Mommy!" She clutched her blankets to her chin and looked at her mother with wide, pleading eyes.

Tori would never understand why this story was Frisk's favorite. It wasn't the unhappy ending or the suffering that the royal family went through; it was the history. Even knowing that, there were so many other, happier, stories that could be told.

"Pretty please? With whipped cream and chocolate shavings on top? You don't like cherries, but you like the other stuff."

Tori smirked and broke, as she usually did. "All right, Frisk. But only once tonight."

Frisk pouted but took the deal. "Okay."

Tori tucked her daughter in a little tighter before leaning back in the chair beside the bed.

"Once upon a time, there was a beautiful and gracious queen named Toriel. Together with her husband, Asgore, they ruled over all the Monster races for thousands of years. Now remember, monsters can live for a very long time, but none quite as long as royalty. Humans have called these royal monsters Boss Monsters. Toriel and Asgore were the last of their kind, but they had a child whom they named Asriel."

"Like 'Toriel' and 'Asgore' together!" Frisk piped in.

Tori giggled. "Yes, just like that. Now you need to hush, sweetie. It's bedtime. Just listen and go to sleep."

Frisk nodded and yawned before snuggling herself deeper into the covers. She closed her eyes and listened to her mother's soothing voice.

"In their Royal Guard were monsters with such powerful magic they could create weapons out of thin air. They used this strong magic for nothing more than protecting the royal family. However, humans were afraid. They feared this magic and what the Boss Monsters themselves were capable of. In order to prevent any possibility of monsters taking over the world, a human named Chara started a war. It became known as The Great War, as it raged on for decades.

"When Prince Asriel was forty years old—remember he would only have been around eight years old, like you, in human years—he was kidnapped! He hadn't learned how to use his Boss powers yet, so he had no way to fight back. Queen Toriel swore that she would bring Humanity down to find her son, but she soon realized that she couldn't hurt innocent humans just because of what a handful humans had done to her. She and Asgore tried so hard to find their son, but they soon got word that he had been killed."

She stopped for a moment to look at her daughter.

"Keep going," Frisk yawned.

Tori smirked to herself. "The royal couple couldn't live without their son. They went into hiding, and it was said by all of Monster kind that they died.

"Humans did what humans do best—they captured the monsters. They killed off the ones with magic and made the rest slaves and did horrible things to them. Until—until a few too many monsters had had enough."

This was Frisk's favorite part. She held her breath and waited.

"A handful of monsters started the rebellion with only simple acts of mutiny. It escalated into a brand-new war, one that proved that monsters were strong even without magic. Fear had kept them down for long enough, and they were sick of it. The war lasted for only one year. Many monsters had hoped the royal family would come back, but they did not. They realized that they couldn't rely on a single family to protect all monsters, so they had to do it themselves.

"That war ended nearly fifty years ago. Today, monsters walk freely amongst humans, enjoying most of the rights that we do. There are still some humans that fear monsters will try to rise up again, although I don't understand why. They just wanted freedom and to be left alone. Our job, as decent human beings, is to treat them the way we would want to be treated by anyone else. We stand up for their rights, we protect them as we would protect our own. Just because they're different doesn't mean they're bad."

Tori leaned over and kissed Frisk's head.

"And soon, we'll all live happily ever after. I love you, sweetie."

Frisk nodded, already half asleep.

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A/N: Thank you for reading! Reviews are lovely.


	2. Chapter 1

A/N: I figured I should probably go ahead and post the first official chapter so y'all can get a feel of how this story will go. In case it wasn't obvious, because it probably wasn't, Tori in this story is human (just named after a monster). It will become important to know in future chapters. For now, however, enjoy chapter 1!

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CHAPTER ONE

It was another boring day at the department store where Frisk worked. She was technically an apparel associate, but her managers seemed to have her on loan to whichever department needed more help each day. This day, she was in fabrics and crafts. There was so little to do that just passing the time seemed like an endeavor. She'd helped a few customers—humans and monsters alike.

She liked helping the monsters in this section better. Monsters in general were nicer than humans anyway, but the ones that came to the fabrics and crafts section were the motherly types that liked to talk to her about the things they were making. It made Frisk happy to hear about their great-great-grandchildren and the sweaters they were going to get for holidays or birthdays.

Unlike humans. Humans could have the sweetest voice in the world and still say things that cut right down to her soul.

She worked the overnight shift, and when nights were slow like this night all she could think about was her warm, comfortable bed just waiting for her. She wanted to go home. She was contemplating making up a headache or stomach ache when a monster she'd never met came rushing up to her.

He held out a swatch of red fabric, soft like worn cotton, and made a gesture like he was asking if she had any of it. She was a little surprised to see bony phalanges.

The skeleton was unlike any monster Frisk had seen before. She hadn't exactly studied their kind, but she had paid attention when she went out. There seemed to be as diverse a population of monsters as there were races of humans. It was intriguing. Still, all the monsters she'd seen up to that point were furry, slimy, or made of pure fire. She'd never seen one that looked so… _human_. Or, rather, human-esque.

It was obvious from just his face that his bones didn't match up with the human anatomy she'd studied in high school. The first, most glaringly obvious, difference was that this monster's skull had eyelids of some sort. Little lights in their eye sockets danced around and seemed to Frisk to be pupils of some kind. His lower jaw also seemed attached to his upper, creating a round face rather than the usual skull-shape she was used to seeing on a human skeleton.

She found a fabric that appeared to match and held it out to him. He looked relieved and nodded.

Another thing she found interesting was his size. Most other monsters were either a lot larger or a lot smaller than humans. This one seemed to be the size of a typical full-grown human man. He was only a few inches taller than her five-foot-six. He dressed in black basketball shorts and a baby blue hooded jacket that was zipped up to his chin. The hood was over his head, no doubt trying to hide his skull from the general population, and his hands stayed in his pockets for much of the encounter. The furry trim around the edge of the hood provided more coverage for him to hide. She had almost laughed at the pink, fluffy slippers he had on his feet, along with tall crew socks.

"What are you making?" she asked as she cut the fabric for him. She hadn't expected him to answer verbally. She had learned Monster Sign Language years ago so she could talk to the mute monsters around her.

Sans lifted a brow bone. "A scarf," he said softly. His baritone voice shocked her for a moment; it wasn't at all what she would have expected out of such a small monster.

She recovered quickly and smiled. "For anyone in particular?"

Sans shifted his weight from foot to foot as she rolled up the fabric and put the bulk of it aside. He wasn't sure what this human was getting at. He just wanted to buy the damn fabric and leave.

He'd encountered prying humans before. They all wanted to know the same things—how was he able to walk without muscles? How did he eat? Why did he even have a voice if he had no larynx? Why did he wear clothes if he was just bones; it wasn't like there was anything to hide.

At least this one hadn't asked those questions yet.

There was something in her oval face that made him want to answer. Her hooded brown eyes, not much more than almond-shaped slits in her face, seemed genuine.

He took a second to look her over. She was just a little shorter than him with chestnut brown hair that matched the color of her eyes. It was cut short, ending just above her shoulders. She wore it down today with a purple headband holding it back from her face. She wore the department store's customary uniform—a purple and blue striped shirt with black pants. Her olive skin tone and the shape of her eyes made him wonder what race of humans she was descended from. She didn't really look like the majority of humans he'd met.

"Yeah, uh…" he rubbed the back of his head, uncertain if he could trust her.

She smiled softer that time. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me; I'm just nosy."

His dark eye sockets met hers, and she could see the lights in them become a tiny bit brighter.

"It's for my brother. He's had this one red scarf since forever, but it's falling apart. He accidentally tore it in two yesterday. I want to make him a new one." He shrugged like it was no big deal.

"That's sweet," she said softly as she tagged his fabric and handed it to him. "I bet he's going to love it."

Sans looked at her for another few seconds before he took it. No off-the-wall, way-too-personal questions. No jabs about his lack of skin. He decided he liked her a little more than most humans he'd met so far. His mouth expanded in a one-sided smile.

"Thanks, Frisk."

Her eyes widened for a second. "How did you know—" she stopped herself and looked down to see her nametag sitting on the left side of her shirt like always. "Oh, duh." She laughed sheepishly.

"Nah, I'm just psychic," he joked. "I'm Sans, by the way." He held out a bony hand.

Frisk smiled wider and shook it without hesitating. "Nice to meet you, Sans."

He left after that, and she was pretty sure she wouldn't see him again.

But she did. She helped him a few more times in various departments throughout the store. Once it was pasta, and she nearly choked at the sight of how many boxes of noodles he was purchasing. Once it was a very specific anime movie that a friend of his had to have. The computer said they had it, but they had to look at the shelves for twenty minutes before they finally found it, all the while talking about movies they enjoyed.

Each time he came in he seemed a little more relaxed. He started to joke with her, telling her the worst puns she could imagine. Even when she was sure he'd hit the absolute rock bottom, he'd dig up something even worse.

" _Ever hear about the guy who got hit in the head with a can of soda?" he asked one day while picking out some drinks for him and his brother. "He was lucky it was a soft drink."_

" _I've been reading a book about anti-gravity," he mentioned one time while looking for a book for one of his friends. "I can't seem to put it down."_

" _Bicycles can't stand on their own because they're two-tired," he said unexpectedly one time._

" _I used to be addicted to soap," he said while picking out laundry soap, "but I'm clean now."_

 _That one really got her. He smiled proudly as she laughed hard enough to make a patron at the end of the aisle look up._

Frisk had begun to look forward to his visits. Although she knew he was just a customer, she couldn't help but feel like maybe she was making a new friend. She still hated the way some of her coworkers and other customers talked to and about him.

One night, she heard a commotion going on near the front of the store. This happened all too often. Although she wasn't the only one in the store who supported the monsters and their right to enjoy a safe trip to the store, sometimes it seemed like she was the only one who would stick up for them. She had stopped humans from bullying monsters in her store too many times to count. No sense in stopping now.

She made her way to the front of the store and saw Sans standing in the middle of a group of four humans. Two of her coworkers cashiering looked on, not doing a single thing to stop it. Although she had stuck up for plenty of monsters in her time, she still started to panic at the thought of her friend in trouble.

She ran up to the group and all but pushed one girl aside.

"Hey!" she yelled and turned around to face the humans, putting herself in front of Sans. "Leave him alone!"

"Oh, look, it's the monster lover!" One person laughed.

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, my gods, Jeff, you're so damn original it kills me. Come on, guys, this isn't funny. Just leave him alone." She put her hands on her hips.

"That _thing_ isn't worth it anyway," Jeff said with a huff, "let's just get out of here." He motioned for the others to follow. They went obediently, the girl that was shoved scowling at Frisk for a second before turning and walking away.

Frisk sighed and turned around. She had expected to see Sans afraid, as most monsters were when confronted like that. Instead, he looked angry.

"Are you okay?" she asked gently.

Sans looked at her, and it seemed his anger melted away. His brow bones softened and straightened out as he nodded. "'M fine." He said with a strange tone. "Thanks, Kid."

He could admit that he liked the small human girl better than he liked most humans, but he wasn't sure if he was ready to admit that she was a friend. Only friends would stand up for someone like him, and that felt like it was going too far. He decided he didn't really need what he'd come for and left.

She really hoped she hadn't embarrassed him. Either way, she couldn't say she regretted her actions.

Even if it did embarrass him, it didn't stop him from coming back.

It got to the point that Frisk wondered if he came to the store just to see her. It hadn't escaped her attention that he sometimes left without even buying anything. She really liked the idea, but at the same time thought it was probably a silly thought. She decided she'd just have to ask him.

"So," she started one night as they wandered the food isles. She was straightening the shelves of various pasta sauces and he was helping her. "You know you're basically volunteering to work for free right now, don't you?" she pointed out.

Sans laughed softly. "I'm looking for something," he said. Sans had decided after a few days that avoiding the only department store in a several-mile radius because of one human was a little ridiculous, even for him. Besides, it wasn't like she was one of the ones who had harassed him. Had that been the case, then maybe avoidance was best. In the given situation, however, Sans had to agree with his brother: new friends—especially human ones—were rare for monsters in this area of Ebott. He might as well give it a try.

She raised an eyebrow. "What is it?" she asked curiously.

He shrugged slightly. "Not sure yet, but the pasta-bilities are endless." He gave her a grin as he tilted a bottle of spaghetti sauce in front of her.

She snorted. "Really, Sans. Tell me what you're looking for, so I can help you find it."

He turned to her with an almost hurt expression in his eye sockets. "What, you don't like my company?" She was sure he meant it more than his joking tone let on.

This was where she was going to let her ulterior motive slip, Sans thought. Damn; he had really grown fond of her.

She smiled reassuringly. "I really enjoy your company, actually. This job is really boring, though. You should be hanging out with your brother."

That wasn't exactly what he'd expected to hear. He decided not to let it show. He shrugged. "Nah, my bro's out doin' his own thing." He snorted an honest laugh at his own comment. His brother was out with his boyfriend at the moment.

She raised an eyebrow. "Why is that funny?" she asked.

She could have sworn his cheekbones turned a slight shade of blue.

"Nothin'," he said a little too quickly. "It's just, uh…no, it's nothin'." He shook his head.

"Okay," she said questioningly, "I don't get you sometimes. Are you just hanging out here then?"

He gave her a genuine smile. "Actually, yes. It's nice being with a friend instead of alone with my thoughts." Okay, so she was his friend. Big deal, right?

She nodded. That was something she could understand a little too well. "I get it," she said softly.

The matter wasn't brought up again. He was truly her friend and his company helped the time pass so much faster.

~L&M~

She had eventually given him her number so they could meet up and spend time together where she wouldn't get in trouble for slacking on the job. She met his brother, Papyrus, and instantly loved him. He was dressed impeccably in black slacks, a burgundy button up, and a black tie. His height worried her for about four seconds—he was at least two feet taller than his brother—but it was over the moment he pulled her into a hug and expressed how happy he was to meet his brother's friend.

He was full of passion and energy and so damn happy it was impossible to be sad around him. The way he talked about spaghetti made her understand the indecent amount of pasta Sans had bought. She thought it was even funnier when Papyrus would groan loudly at a particularly bad pun.

She'd met his other friends as well. Although she'd known his friends wouldn't all be human-sized monsters, she was still surprised at the variety of monsters she did meet.

She had to believe the old saying 'opposites attract' after meeting Undyne and Alphys.

Undyne was almost as tall as Papyrus with a beautiful aquamarine skin tone that almost seemed to shimmer in the sunlight. She liked to strut around and show off her sizable muscles, especially around her girlfriend. Her red hair was pulled back in high ponytail that seemed to Frisk could double as a whip. She let a short chunk of it fall forward onto her face, covering her left eye. It wasn't hard to tell why. Her left eye was also covered with a black eye patch. Otherwise her face was pretty with a deep purple right eye, flattened nose, and expressive gill ears. Frisk made the mistake of saying so.

"Pretty?" Undyne shouted. "I'm not pretty! I'm brutal!"

Frisk had nearly choked at the sight of Undyne's pointed teeth. Okay, maybe pretty was not the right word.

Alphys giggled. "You're brutally beautiful," she said with a smile.

Undyne grinned. "You got that right, babe."

Alphys, Undyne's girlfriend, was a little shorter than Sans and looked to Frisk like a lizard monster. She was shy, barely speaking at all throughout the entire visit. When she did speak, Frisk could tell she was smart. She also learned that Alphys was the one Sans had bought the anime for.

Meeting his friends made her wonder why he chose to spend his nights at the department store with her when he could be spending time with monsters like himself. She learned quickly not to question his motives. He just liked her presence, he said. Their friendship meant a lot to him, and she appreciated that. It meant a lot to her, too.

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A/N: Thank you for reading! I'll be updating every Sunday, hopefully. I'll try to at least stay on a somewhat weekly schedule. Life is crazy right now, but I have a good chunk of this written.

Reviews are lovely!

And I'm on Twitter at sheewolf85


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: **WARNING: This chapter contains mentions of rape. Please read carefully!**

I promise I'm not throwing this in there for shits and giggles...there is a real purpose here.

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CHAPTER TWO – A Year Later

The whole town was abuzz with fear after the third woman in a row had been raped in the middle of the night. All three had been out walking, all three had been alone, but not all three had been human. The third was a rabbit monster named Clarissa. Although it hurt Frisk to see her story in the news, it made her feel better to know that the crime against this monster wasn't being ignored the way so many others had.

The whole thing made her nervous about going to work, but she couldn't just not go. She wondered if Sans would be opposed to walking her home until the perpetrators had been caught. She didn't have a car to begin with, but it wasn't an issue most of the time since she worked a block away from her apartment. That block distance seemed like so much longer at the prospect of walking alone in the dark.

She texted him that night before walking to work.

 _Hey Sans, question for ya._

She continued to get ready as she waited for a response. It came less than a minute later.

 _Hey Kiddo, answer for ya. It might even be related to your question._

She smiled.

 _How awful would it be of me to ask you to walk me home after my shift tonight?_

She took a breath and put her phone back down on the counter. It wasn't like she was asking him to stand sentry over her the whole night, she thought. Even though they'd known each other a year, and she knew she could talk to him whenever she needed him, it still felt like she was asking too much of her friend.

 _It would make you an AWFUL-ly horrible person. The worst brat to ever bratwurst. Do I really have to?_

She laughed a little, but then a worm of doubt wriggled in her stomach.

 _No._

She puffed out her cheeks and waited nervously. What if he really didn't want to?

 _What time do you get off?_

Was he really okay with this?

 _At two in the morning. I'm sorry, Sans. You don't have to; I'll be fine._

Her stomach turned a little bit. She didn't blame him one bit for not wanting to come down to the store just to walk her a block. She would be fine. The path was mostly well-lit, and one of the apartments on the corner was part of the neighborhood watch. And yet, she still couldn't shake this horrible fear of walking home alone.

 _Did you really just apologize for wanting to feel safe? Don't be dumb, Frisk. I'll be there._

She breathed a sigh of relief and texted a thanks to him before she finished getting ready.

Her shift was long and boring, but she perked up when she saw the time was already one-forty-five. She finished her zone and went into the break room to get ready to leave. When she walked out, Sans was waiting in front of one of the empty cash registers for her. She smiled brightly and waived as she went over to him.

He hugged her shoulders. "You ready to go, Kiddo?" he asked.

"Yes, but I'm not a 'Kiddo'; I'm almost twenty-two years old."

Sans snorted. "That would make you a kiddo. You have three guesses about my age."

One thing she knew about monsters was that they lived an extraordinarily long time. She looked up at him for a moment, squinting her eyes and thinking.

"Five hundred," she guessed.

Both of his brow bones raised. "Damn. I'm not a grandpa yet."

Okay, too old, she thought to herself. "Three hundred?"

"Nope."

She let herself think for a minute as they walked down the dark path. She liked that he hadn't let her go yet; his arm around her shoulders made her feel even safer.

They stopped at her front door and she dug her keys out of her purse. "Two hundred and thirty-seven," she said as she turned to unlock the door.

"Nope. You're out of guesses." He came in behind her and shut the door. "One hundred and five." He flopped down on the couch and looked up at her.

She put her hands on her hips. "So, in other words, you're a kiddo, too." She loved the light blue that graced his cheekbones.

"Not by human standards."

Frisk sat down next to him and hugged his arm. "You're not a human, so I can't hold you to human standards. In monster terms, you're a young skeleton."

He tried to pull away, but she knew he was playing. She held on tighter.

"I am not," he whined. "I'm a fully grown, way-older-than-you, skeleton."

"Whatever. Baby Bones." She reached up and pinched his cheekbone. The light blue there darkened just a little.

"Nah, that's Papyrus. I'm Adolescent Bones." He looked down at her and laughed at the look on her face. "What?"

"Papyrus is the _younger_ brother?" she asked incredulously. "But he's so…tall?"

Sans laughed. "Yeah, he's taller, but I'm older. Haven't you ever noticed how much of a child he is? He's so innocent."

She loved it when he talked about his brother. It was obvious how much he cared for the other skeleton.

"How old is he?"

"I'm not really sure, actually. I found him when he was a toddler, so I'm thinking maybe forty years younger than me?" He scratched his head. "It's hard to tell sometimes."

She nodded, confused again. "You found him?"

Sans looked down at her with a soft glow in his eye sockets. "Yeah. I went to take some stuff to the dump one day. While I was there, I saw this little bundle of blankets waddling around. When I realized it was a baby monster, I scooped him up. Imagine my surprise when it's a little skeleton! He babbled at me, but he couldn't talk to tell me where he came from. Dad and I searched for his parents, but we came up empty handed. After about two weeks, Dad decided he was going to adopt him. I'd always wanted a brother, so I was ecstatic."

She rested her head on his shoulder blade. "He's really lucky to have you as a big brother, Sans."

He pulled away to hug her shoulders. "Thanks, Frisk. How are you doing? I mean with this whole mess?"

She shrugged a little. "I'm okay. Just kind of scared, y'know?" she looked down at her lap. "I think I might have to invest in a car."

Sans rubbed her arm gently. "Nah, y'got me. I'll walk you home every night."

She looked up at him, a little surprised. "Seriously?"

He nodded. "Of course. I can't imagine you'll be able to get a car tomorrow, and I don't want you to get hurt. So yeah, I'll be your bone-ified guardian for a bit. It's not like you didn't earn it." He smiled again.

She grinned. "Thank you." She wasn't sure two small incidences of standing up for him warranted his services as personal bodyguard for an undetermined number of nights, but she wasn't about to complain.

~LM~

Two weeks and four assaulted women later, she was nearly a wreck walking home. Even with Sans there, it seemed she might not be safe. Two women had been attacked with their friends or significant others there to keep them safe. One of the boyfriends took a stab wound to the chest and died later in the hospital. It terrified Frisk to think of Sans getting hurt trying to protect her.

Sans was a little on edge, too. He wanted to stop the attacks from happening, but it seemed the group dissipated once the sun rose and only reappeared when they were on the hunt again. He couldn't track them, which meant they had to be human. He couldn't even tell how many of them there were.

It was a rare night off for Frisk when she decided to walk across the street to the all-night café to get some dinner. The monster that ran the shop was a little off-putting at first, but once Frisk got to know her, she was a charming spider-lady.

She bundled up and put her keys and phone in her pocket before heading out. She looked both ways at the sidewalk and then took a step out in the road. Halfway across, she heard a muffled scream. She didn't dare stop in the middle of the street, so she hurried across and stopped to listen closely. She heard scuffling coming from the alleyway a building down from the café. She told herself to ignore it; it wasn't worth putting herself in danger.

And yet, the thought filled her with guilt. There could be someone in real danger, and she might be able to help. With a nod of determination, she pulled out her phone and texted Sans.

 _Hey, can you come over?_

He had promised a few nights prior that he wasn't sick of her yet and to let him know anytime she needed him. Right now, she needed him, because she wasn't about to face this threat alone.

She took a few steps toward the alleyway when Sans texted her back, startling her. He was on his way. She breathed a sigh of relief and continued forward. When she heard another scuffle and another muffled scream, her heart jumped out of her chest and she bolted into a run. She turned down the alleyway and stopped short when she saw five large men surrounding a woman, already hurting her.

"Hey!" she screamed. "Hey, get off of her!"

She ran forward again, not sure at all what she intended to do. Filled with anger, she plowed right into one of the men, knocking them both over. In an instant, she realized what a terrible idea that had been.

The man's arms wrapped around her tightly as she started to struggle. All five men laughed. The one holding the other girl down pulled away and started yanking his pants back up.

"All right," said the one holding Frisk. "We'll get off of her. We're done anyway."

Another man slapped the bound woman's backside before untying her restraints.

"Come on, guys," said another man. "Let's take this one somewhere else."

The blood drained from her face. She started to struggle in earnest and screamed as loud as she could. It was nearly instantly muffled by a hand covering half of her face.

"Shut up, you loud bitch. You're the one that came to us." The man holding her laughed as he stood up, his arms still holding her in a vice grip. "It ain't our fault you're so fucking horny."

She closed her eyes tightly as excruciating fear bubbled in her stomach. It boiled its way into her chest and made tears spill out of her eyes. She didn't stop fighting, praying to whatever deity might listen that Sans would look down the alley and see her. As the men rounded a corner at the far end and her street turned out of view, she knew she was well and truly fucked.

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A/N: Thank you for reading. Reviews are lovely.

I'm on Twitter at Sheewolf85. Come chat with me!


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: **WARNING: More mentions of rape, violence, and a bit o' gore in this chapter**. Not much gore, but squeamish stomachs might have an issue. For those triggered, I will tell you now that Frisk is not raped in this chapter or any other.

Once again, I promise there is a reason for this. She's gotta find out that Sans is a magical monster somehow, and other scenarios just seemed like overkill for him to use his magic. He's gotta be desperate.

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CHAPTER THREE

Sans whistled to himself as he turned the corner to Frisk's apartment complex. He wasn't sure why she had asked him over tonight, but he wasn't about to say no to a night with a friend. He loved spending time with her. She was funny and laughed at his jokes—even the ones he felt were almost too painful to say aloud. She liked scary movies a little better than Papyrus did, which was a plus in his book.

Just as he was about to walk up the steps to her apartment, he stopped. Something felt cold in his soul. It was something he had only ever felt once before, and it scared the shit out of him.

When Papyrus was in fourth grade, he had been attacked by a bunch of human bullies that broke his left humerus and right fibula. They had dragged him to a wooded area behind the school and were planning to continue their beating until he turned to dust. Sans had felt that chill then, and had found the source in time to save his brother.

He turned, breathing rapidly already, and searched out the source of the chill. There was a line of a smoke-like substance, red as human blood, wafting in the soft breeze across the street from Frisk's apartment. He'd never seen red magic before. He furrowed his brow bones and walked across the street. The iciness in his soul continued to get even colder as he approached.

The red mist began moving, slightly swaying as it shifted direction and traveled down the sidewalk. It turned a corner, and Sans followed.

He stopped short when he saw a woman hunched in the alleyway, her knees brought to her chest. She was crying quietly into her knees with her arms wrapped around her legs.

"Hey," he called out. He had to wonder why magic would lead him to a complete stranger, but it continued to waft ever closer to the girl on the ground. He ran to get closer. "Hey, are you okay?"

The woman looked up and froze. He cursed himself for thinking a random human could trust a skeleton. He took a step backward and held up his hands to show he meant no harm.

"I'm here to help," he said with a soft tone. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head and sniffled. "I'm not okay, but I'm scared for her. They took her, and I don't know where they went."

Sans' bones stiffened. "Her who?" he asked, his left eye already starting to heat up.

The woman shrunk back against the wall. "I don't know who she was. She tried to stop them, but they took her."

"What did she look like, then?" he demanded.

The red mist swirled right past the woman on the ground and continued down the alley. If there was any doubt in his mind who had been taken, it was gone now.

"Never mind," he growled, mostly to himself.

He didn't give the girl a chance to say anything else. He made a call to the police to come pick her up and walked away, following the mist halfway down the alley.

With his eye now fully charged, he took a moment to breathe and focus on where the mist was going. He stood still and followed it with his magic, like looking at a map. It moved too slowly, he thought. It must have been the frail connection to a human. Normally, he wouldn't have been able to sense anything at all. He didn't care why he could suddenly feel his friend; all he cared about was getting to her in time to help her.

Two minutes of searching later, he finally caught her location. He could hear the sirens getting closer to saving the girl in the alley. He didn't need to stay to make sure she was okay. Resolve set, he snapped his fingers and disappeared from the alley.

~LM~

Frisk's determination was waning with each minute she struggled against her restraints. The men had tied her to a pipe in the abandoned basement they somehow seemed to live in. They were in the far corner of the room, standing by what looked like dirty and unmade mattresses on the floor, discussing something she couldn't quite make out. The words she was able to catch scared her even worse and made her feel lucky that she didn't fully understand what they were about to do her.

As they spoke, she looked around the room. There was a table bolted to the floor in the middle of the room. It didn't look like a dining table, and there were no chairs. On one end, there was a small post that stuck up four inches. She could only imagine what the table was for. Her thoughts terrified her.

She prayed that Sans could somehow find her. She had gathered from Sans' rambling about these men that monsters could track their own kind, but couldn't seem to get that same focus on humans. She still managed to find hope that being Sans' good friend would let him know that she was in trouble.

Her hopes seemed dashed as the men turned around and looked at her. The one she had decided was the leader stepped forward first with a nasty grin twisted on his face. She had heard the others refer to him as Mike.

"I'm really going to enjoy this," he said as he walked toward her. The others followed suit.

Frisk shrank back from him as Mike stepped up to her. He reached out and grabbed her chin.

"Don't turn away from me, you bitch." He spat in her face and let go only to slap her. "You move only when I tell you to."

The one she'd heard being called Chris stepped up to her side and started to undo the binding around her wrists. Instead of relief, she only felt more terrified.

"Please don't do this," she begged, "I promise I won't tell anyone who you are."

Mike slapped her again. "Don't fucking talk unless I demand it!"

She whimpered and nodded.

The two men picked her up roughly and carried her over to the table. They all but tossed her onto the cold, hard surface. Chris took her hands and pulled them above her head, tying them down again to a small post that seemed to be there for this purpose.

As Mike started to lift her shirt, she felt a strong bolt of lightning through her whole body. She shrieked, startled at the intensity of the shock. _What the hell was that?_

Suddenly the two men closest to her were surrounded in blue light. Before Frisk could even wonder what was going on, they flew across the room and smashed against the wall.

"You're all going to want to get the hell away from my friend," Sans said with a low growl.

Frisk looked up as best as she could. She wanted to say that she was so relieved to see him there, but what she saw terrified her.

Sans stood in the corner of the room, his left eye blazing with blue fire that crackled up his skull. His left hand was held out in front of him, also engulfed in blue flame. It didn't take her more than five seconds to realize what had happened.

The blue light that threw the men across the room had been Sans' magic.

She'd heard of some monsters having magic. Those that did have it were only supposed to be able to affect other monsters, and even then, only those closest to them. She'd read stories about monsters from centuries ago that could summon magical weapons and single-handedly destroy small human armies.

It seemed like ages before anyone moved, but in reality, only a few seconds had passed before the three other men in the room charged the monster. One pulled a gun from the waistband of his pants and took aim. Frisk screamed.

What happened next was a blur of blue, white, and red that Frisk would never forget. As the shot was fired, a wall of white bones appeared in front of Sans, somehow protecting him from the bullet. It shattered upon impact. As quickly as the wall had appeared, it was gone. It seemed to have just shifted, suddenly becoming an arsenal of bones pointed at the men. Sans hurled his glowing hand forward, and the bones flew straight into the advancing men.

Frisk screamed again as the bones impaled the men, one going straight through a man's head. Blood spattered the table she was on.

"Stop it, or she'll die!" Mike yelled.

Somehow Frisk hadn't managed to notice him coming up behind the table. Sans seemed to have missed it as well.

Mike held a blade to Frisk's throat. "I swear to the gods, I'll kill her right now if you so much as flinch!"

Sans' eye somehow seemed to glow even brighter.

"Nah, you're gonna let her go. 'Cause if you don't, you're gonna have a _bad fuckin' time_."

The knife started to glow, and without warning flew across the room and stabbed the wall next to Chris, who was still unconscious.

Terrified and desperate, Mike wrapped his hands around Frisk's throat. "Fine, I'll kill her with my bare hands."

"Wrong choice," Sans said with a smirk.

Frisk tried to kick and scream, flailing as much as she could with her hands tied and her throat being squeezed. She jumped when she felt a warm blanket of light envelop her. It held her down, pinning her legs to the table. Suddenly she was even more terrified. What was he doing? He couldn't be serious?

A strong blast of white hot light filled the room. It lasted for a full second before it disappeared. Frisk didn't dare open her eyes. The blue light-blanket holding her down was gone, but she still didn't dare to move. She cried openly, so scared of what Sans was going to do next. It didn't even occur to her that there were no longer hands around her throat.

"Now, what to do with you?" she heard him say with a dark, twisted humor. She opened her eyes and saw him standing next to Chris by the wall.

"Sans?" she managed to squeak.

He looked over at her. His eye was still burning, but not nearly as bright as it had been. His hand was no longer on fire. The flame in his eye disappeared with a blink, and he walked over to her.

"Frisk, are you okay?" He untied the rope around her hands and helped her to sit up. "Please tell me they didn't hurt you." He looked her over. Her clothing was still intact, but her jeans had been undone. His left eye began to glow again. "Did they fuckin' touch you?" he growled.

Frisk threw herself at him, so scared and yet finally feeling safe at the same time. She couldn't find any words to say. She clung to him tightly and buried her face in the shoulder of his jacket. His arms wrapped around her and held on.

Sans wanted to just take her home, but there was the matter of the one remaining assailant. With a sigh, he raised his left hand and summoned a single bone. It landed perfectly in the middle of the man's forehead.

Frisk screamed again and tried to pull back. Before Sans could let her, he had to get her home. He located her house and snapped his fingers.

Frisk finally managed to free herself and stumbled backward. She fell back and nearly had a heart attack when she landed on her couch.

"What in the ever-living fuck!" she screeched. "How the hell am I home? What the hell did you do?"

Sans smiled sadly and stepped back to sit on the floor as far away he could get. He figured she would be too scared of him to consider remaining his friend, but at least she was alive.

"I killed them," he said matter-of-factly.

She tried hard to take a deep breath, but her lungs refused to fill. Instead, she could only take in shallow breaths. Her head started to feel a little too light.

"How am I here?" She questioned. She brought her knees up to her chest and pushed her face into them. "What the fuck just happened?" She began to rock gently.

Sans sighed and stood up. He couldn't let her ride out a panic attack on her own. He just hoped that his closeness didn't make it worse.

"Hey," he said softly as he sat down next to her. "Frisk, it's okay." He gently touched her back.

Instead of pulling away like he was afraid she'd do, she turned and shoved herself at him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close as she cried into his chest. She was still rocking and shaking so hard he was afraid she'd fall apart soon. He shushed her gently and just held her until she'd cried herself out.

Still breathing heavily, she pulled back and tried to wrap her head around the events of the last half hour. She looked around the room and realized that she really was home; it wasn't an illusion. She looked at Sans again and sniffled.

"How am I home?" she asked quietly.

Sans sucked in a deep breath and started to rub soothing circles on her back.

"I teleported us." He figured there was no use in playing it safe or sugar-coating anything at this point. She had seen almost every bit of magic he was capable of summoning, so there was no point in trying to hide anything.

"T-t…" she shook her head as if to try to clear it. "Teleported?"

Sans nodded. "Yep."

"How?"

He smiled. "Magic."

"Magic." She repeated the word softly as if she was hearing it for the first time. "You're a magical monster." She scooted away from him and pressed her back against the back of the couch. "You're supposed to be extinct."

Sans smirked. "Nah, we just learned how to hide real good."

Her eyebrows furled. "Hide?"

Sans laughed. "Man, you are out of it. Yeah, we hide our magic so human armies don't try to capture us. If they knew what I could do, I wouldn't be killed. There are much worse things than that." He shuddered.

Frisk realized slowly what he was saying. Her head was clearing, but it was still fuzzy. "There are more of you?"

"Magic monsters, yes. More of me" —he gestured to his whole body— "no. I'm the only me."

She felt her lips pull up at the edges. A thought made them fall again. "You killed them."

Sans nodded. "Yep. And don't even think about trying to make me feel bad about it, cuz that won't happen." He looked at her sideways.

She shook her head. "I don't want to do that. But you can summon weapons." Her arms tightened around her legs.

He nodded again. "Sure can. You're safe, okay? I wouldn't dream of hurting an innocent person. Those freaks were the furthest thing from innocent."

She thought of something and looked at him questioningly. "Why wouldn't you protect yourself against those bullies?"

He huffed. "Nah, they don't deserve to see something so cool."

She thought about that for a minute. She wasn't sure if 'cool' was the word she would have used for what she'd seen. She shivered again at the memory.

Her stomach twisted again as she remembered blood and brain matter spattering on the table. She wasn't quite sure how it had managed to miss her legs. An involuntary memory of the moment right before he zapped her home invaded her mind. She had turned and looked at where Mike had been standing above her. At first, she thought he had just disappeared. She could clearly see in her memory now that that was not the case. His top half was gone, but on the floor laid his legs, the bottom half of his waist, and intestines that had spilled out. And his hands…his hands were still on the table on either side of where her head had been.

Her stomach heaved, and she jumped up to run to the bathroom. Her legs buckled under her, and she toppled to the floor. Before she hit, however, she felt the warm blanket of blue light envelop her once again. She was set gently on her feet, and Sans stood in front of her to hold her steady.

"Okay?" he asked with concern in his eye sockets.

Her stomach seemed to have forgotten about its impromptu dumping session. She took a deep breath and nodded.

"Yeah. I think so. Thanks."

He nodded and pulled back.

They stood in silence for a moment. Sans desperately wanted to ask her if they were still friends, but he was too scared of her answer.

Frisk wanted to say something—anything—to bring back the lighthearted mood of all of their other times together. She wasn't sure those words existed. Sans had just killed five people right in front of her; there was no way she was going to be able to pretend he was the easy-going skeleton she'd thought he was.

Sans sighed and brought a bony hand up to rub the back of his skull.

"Are you gonna be okay tonight?" he asked, looking down at his slipper-clad feet.

Frisk nodded. When she realized he couldn't see her, she spoke. "Yeah, I'll be okay. I'm not leaving the house for another month."

He looked up at her and smirked sadly. "Okay. You know how to contact me if you need anything."

She nodded again. "Yeah."

They stood there in silence for another minute before Sans reached out and gently touched her shoulder.

"Hang in there, Kiddo. See ya later."

She almost said something back, but then his eye started to glow. He snapped his fingers and suddenly he was gone.

She squeaked in surprise and jumped back. She looked around suspiciously for a few minutes before it hit her that he had probably teleported home.

She stood in the same place and focused on her breathing for a few long minutes before she decided she was tired. She rubbed her face with her hands and walked slowly down the hall to her bedroom. She couldn't make herself change out of her clothes. Instead, she let herself fall haphazardly onto the bed and closed her eyes.

Her dreams were a confusing muddle of blue fire, white hot light, and a lot of Sans. His left eye burning with magic made for both terrifying and yet comforting feelings swirling around her.

* * *

A/N: Thank you for reading. I hope it was everything you hoped for and more…

Reviews are lovely; I'd love to know your thoughts!

And also, I'm on Twitter at Sheewolf85; come talk to me! I don't bite! (unless that's what you're into?)


	5. Chapter 4

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who's been reading, and especially to those who reviewed. I truly appreciate every one of you. I hope you enjoy this new chapter.

Huh? What's that? It's NOT Sunday?! Oh, I know. I'm going to start updating twice a week for now. I have a ton of the story written and it's just bugging the crap out of me not updating every day, so I'm gonna do my best to be okay with twice a week. So, expect a chapter every Sunday and Wednesday, and I'll do my best to keep that schedule.

* * *

CHAPTER FOUR

The next morning, she woke up almost certain the night before had been a dream. If it weren't for the fact that she was still in the same clothes, she might have been able to convince herself that it _had_ been her imagination.

As she ate her breakfast, a sickening realization hit her. She had never thanked Sans for saving her life. She'd questioned him down about how he'd done it, and she'd muttered gratitude for not letting her fall flat on her face, but she'd never _actually_ thanked him.

She finished her cereal and took her bowl to the sink. She tried to remember the way they'd left things the night before. She remembered awkward silence—a first in their friendship—and a strained goodbye. Back in her room, she took her phone off the charger and sat on her bed to text her friend.

 _I need to say something, but it's…I can't say it over text. When can we get together?_

She refused to believe that a simple 'thanks for saving my life' was sufficient, especially in a text. It had to be face to face. She needed to apologize for…something. She wasn't sure what yet, but she felt the need in her gut.

 _I'm free now. Are you home?_

She swallowed and nodded to herself. This was going to happen.

 _Yeah, I'm home._

She jumped and nearly screamed when she felt a weak recurrence of the lightning from the night before dart through her body. There was a knock at her door only two seconds after she'd hit send. Somehow, she knew it was Sans. She took a deep breath and went to let him in.

Frisk stepped back to let her skeleton friend in. He stepped in, and she couldn't help but look him over. He was wearing his usual blue hoodie, but instead of black basketball shorts he was wearing a pair of loose-fitting jeans and sneakers on his feet.

Sans was relieved to hear from her so soon after scaring the literal wits out of her the night before. He'd had a lot of time to think about the mistakes he'd made. He should have eased her into it rather than being so blunt with her.

"Hey Sans," she said with a small smile.

"Hey." He smiled back just as hesitantly. He wanted to give her a hug, but he was afraid she'd flinch away. Instead, he walked to the couch and tried to play like this was any other visit. "What's on your mind?"

Frisk sat beside him. "I need to tell you something." She shook her head; that wasn't how she should have started. "I mean, I've been thinking." Why didn't any of these words sound right?

Sans looked at her in silence, hoping against hope that she wasn't about to tell him she was too terrified of him to remain his friend.

She took a deep breath and held it for a second before blowing the air out slowly. She couldn't stand the way he was looking at her, fear in his eye sockets. How could he be afraid?

"I'm really sorry," she blurted. "I'm sorry for how I acted last night. I'm sorry for going down that godsforsaken alleyway. I'm sorry I got mixed up in the middle of all of that." She felt herself start shaking as the memories came flooding back. "I was so stupid! I just thought I could help someone. I'm so sorry!"

Sans reached out and started to rub her back.

"Hey Kiddo, it's okay. You were trying to help. You had no way of knowing how outnumbered you were going to be."

She sniffled and nodded. "I know, but I'm still sorry."

They sat in silence for another minute before Frisk realized she still hadn't mentioned the real reason she'd asked him to come over. She took another deep breath for courage.

"Thank you, Sans." That wasn't so hard. It still didn't sound like enough. "For everything."

She looked back up at him and met the lights in his eye sockets. She could almost swear he knew what she was trying to say.

Sans smiled and patted her back. "It was my pleasure."

She raised an eyebrow. "Pleasure?"

He shrugged. "Hear me out." He pulled his arm back in case she'd get scared again. "First, I haven't been able to use magic like that in a long time. It felt good. Second, those fuckers had done a lot more than just rape a few women. You probably don't know this, but when my magic is activated it can be used to judge a person's soul, both human and monster. I tried to use that to find them, but there are too many humans around here. If I judge the wrong person and they feel it, I'm screwed.

"Being there with them, however, I had access to judge them thoroughly. Each and every one of them had killed at least once before. They were planning on killing you, too." He shuddered at the memory of their darkened souls. "And third, you're my best friend, Frisk. I would do anything I felt was necessary to keep you safe."

She nodded slowly, digesting what he'd just said. "Have you judged me?" she asked.

He smirked. "No. I don't need to. I can feel your innocence a mile away."

Her face scrunched up in a scowl. "I'm not innocent."

Sans snorted. "Bet me."

She turned to look at him. "What do you mean by innocence?" she asked, not entirely sure now what he meant. Could he tell she'd never—

"I mean you'd spend an extra two minutes fixing a shelf you'd already straightened five times just because a customer came in and messed it up again. You can't help but stop and pet every single dog you come across—regardless of if they're monsters or pets. You stand up for monster rights as if they're your own rights. You eat _and compliment_ my brother's cooking for hell's sake. You're as innocent as they come."

She blushed. "But I've done bad things." She wasn't sure why she wanted to argue about this. It wasn't like she was trying to prove she was a bad-ass. She knew she wasn't hardcore and she'd never be.

Suddenly his left eye burst into blue flame. "Okay," he said with a slight grin, "let's see what you've done."

She felt the warmth of his magic slip into her chest. At first, it was like she couldn't breathe. It only took a moment for her to adjust, like walking into a windstorm.

Images flitted through Sans' mind, like watching a screen. Some images were faded, others were newer.

"You stole a bag of gummy worms from the store when you were six years old. You cheated on your math homework in fifth grade. You—" he gasped theatrically "—Frisk! You naughty girl! You lied to your mother about losing your lunch money in high school when in reality you'd spent it on chocolate bars for your friends." He gave her a look of mock disapproval. "White lies, a few petty grudges…nothing serious."

His magic slowly dissipated, leaving her chest feel a little cold. She put her hand over her heart, still breathing a little heavily.

"You got scared when I saved your life. That's nothin' to feel guilty about, Kiddo."

She looked over at him quizzically. "Is that something bad? That I got scared?" It probably was, she thought. Of course it was, otherwise he wouldn't be able to see it. At least, that's how she thought it worked.

Sans scooted closer to her on the couch and put his arm around her shoulders. "No, it's not. See, this judgement thing works in two ways. First, it finds things you feel guilty about. Those are the kinds of things that I would look at to see what's truly bad, a misunderstanding, or a mistake. Second, it finds things like murder, rape, arson…things that hurt another person and have no guilt attached. Those are the objectively bad things."

Frisk nodded slowly. "I do feel bad about being scared, though." She looked down. "You wouldn't hurt me."

His soul warmed at her words. She was still his friend. "Frisk, have you ever seen a monster use magic before?" he asked gruffly, already knowing her answer.

She shook her head and looked back up at him. "No, but I've read about it. My mom used to tell me stories about the ancient warrior monsters who could summon weapons…like you do."

He looked at her, meeting her eyes with soft lights in his sockets. "Very few humans alive today have actually seen a monster use magic the way I did last night. Those that have are old, like before the last war old. I would be really concerned if you _didn't_ get scared after seeing that."

She took a moment to study his face. "So, it doesn't…I didn't hurt your feelings?"

He scoffed. "No, of course not. I'm glad you've got something like common sense in there. Promise me you won't go running after trouble again." He pulled her closer and hugged her gently. He felt like he could breathe easier now knowing that their friendship was intact.

She blushed and hugged him back. "I promise."

He pressed his teeth to her hair in something that resembled a kiss. "Good."

She pulled back and turned further to face him. "Won't someone find out what happened? I mean, someone's going to run across those guys' bodies."

Sans nodded. "Yep, they will. But I got friends in high places who owe me favors and it's being taken care of as we speak."

She furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?"

He laughed a little. "I mean I sort of helped out a lot of people in my early days; they're cleaning up the mess right now and creating a fascinating tale about how the men were killed in a police shoot-out after their hideout was discovered."

Frisk considered that for a moment. "Aren't you worried _I'm_ going to say something?" Even though she never would, she wondered if he was nervous about it.

He shook his head. "Nah. I did think about that for a minute, but I know you better than that."

Her heart warmed at the thought of him trusting her so much. "I'm glad to hear you won't get in trouble." She leaned into him again and let him pull her ever closer. "And I'm glad we're still friends." She hugged him tightly and snuggled her face into his clavicle.

"Me too, Frisk." He rubbed her back gently for a moment.

The silence felt nice for both of them. They spent the day together, talking and joking with each other.

All too soon, she realized how late it had gotten. Time really did fly when you were saving your friendship with your best skeleton bud.

"Shit, I gotta get ready for work." She struggled to get up.

Sans steadied her and stood up beside her. "Do you still want me to walk you home?" he asked.

She looked at him and considered his question. Even though she knew she was safe, she felt a twinge of fear run through her gut when she thought of being out alone at night.

"Please," she said softly.

He nodded. "I'll be there."

They hugged each other one more time before he teleported home.

~LM~

The following weeks went by far too quickly for Frisk. They seemed to be a blur of getting to know Sans even more than she had before. She spent more time with him and his friends and was surprised to learn that most of his friends were capable of wielding magic as well.

At first, it was terrifying. The use of magic around her brought back painful memories. Sans and Papyrus helped her through it. She didn't want to be afraid of their magic just because it reminded her of bad times, so they showed her good times with it. Both Sans and Papyrus showed her that magic could be used for things other than weapons. They showed her tricks, they played charades with magic, and they moved things around for an epic scavenger hunt.

Undyne figured that since Frisk already knew what magic was capable of, she didn't need to be so secretive with her spears. Papyrus proved to be a force to be reckoned with himself as he summoned several bones to throw at Undyne after she insulted his spaghetti one night.

Her comment and the bones to follow sparked a near war between Undyne and Papyrus. Alphys had taken Undyne's side. Frisk was almost surprised that the lizard monster _couldn't_ summon weapons, but she was able to put a force field around Undyne to protect her from Papyrus' attacks. Sans had taken Papyrus' side, which resulted in two-tone bones, white and blue, being thrown at the couple.

It wasn't until one of the spears nearly hit Frisk that any of the monsters realized the kind of danger they'd put her in. She screamed and ducked as the blue spear slammed into the wall five inches from her head. Sans' eye suddenly burst into a flame brighter than she'd seen before and the entire group was suspended in blue light.

"Everyone stop!" he yelled. "Fucking hell—Frisk are you okay?"

He dropped everyone and quickly waved the spear away from her. He pulled her into a hug and apologized five times in a row before letting her go enough to hear her answer.

Frisk nodded, still shaken. "I'm okay."

Papyrus was the second to apologize, followed closely by Alphys. Undyne seemed reluctant until Sans told her how fragile Frisk really was. It would only take one spear to the face to kill her.

Frisk wasn't sure what to think of that. How many spears to the face would it take to kill someone like Undyne? Was that how she'd gotten the eye patch? The thought was almost scary.

"Um, Sans?" Papyrus said after things had settled down.

"Yeah, bro?"

"You owe a dollar to the swear jar."

Frisk snorted. "The what?"

Sans grumbled. "Paps doesn't like it when I swear. When I do it around him, I have to pay him money."

Undyne laughed as well. "I hope it goes toward your kitchen when he cooks!" she yelled.

"UNDYNE!" Papyrus shrieked.

* * *

A/N: Thank you for reading! Reviews are lovely.

Come chat with me on Twitter! I'm at SheeWolf85.


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: Beware! PTA!Sans doesn't like bullies. I blame my daughter entirely for this long chapter. Enjoy!

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CHAPTER FIVE

They didn't just spend time with Sans' friends. Frisk almost felt bad that they'd known each other for over a year and he'd never met her family. She asked him about it one day.

"You want me to meet your family?" Sans asked. "Gross."

Frisk laughed. "Not gross, you bonehead."

"A real numbskull, that's me." He pretended to give himself a noogie.

"But I'm serious. My mom and my brother are like me; they support monsters the way they would want to be supported if our situations were reversed. Please? I know they would love to meet you."

Sans considered that for a second. "You have a brother, too? How come I never knew that?"

"I don't know, but he's in high school. He'll graduate next year. Most of his friends are monsters, too."

"Hmm. I suppose it couldn't hurt. Your mom won't think it's anything…weird, right?"

Frisk laughed out loud. "Oh, my gods, Sans, you're worried about what my mom will think? I mean, she's my mom, but she knows we're just friends. Ya goon."

Sans breathed a sigh of relief. "In that case, I'll go meet 'em."

"I have to warn you, though; don't stare at MK, my brother. He was born without any arms, so he does a lot of things with his feet when he's at home. He doesn't like it when people stare."

Sans nodded. "You realize you're talking to a monster here, right? Humans might all have the same basic blueprints, but we don't. I know plenty of monsters without arms."

Frisk made a plan with her mom to bring Sans over for dinner one Friday night. Tori was excited to finally meet the monster her daughter talked about so often.

~LM~

"I never met a skeleton before," MK said with a nod of his blond head. "You look pretty cool."

Sans smiled. "Thanks, Kid." He gently nudged his shoulder against MK's. He had misjudged his strength, and MK stumbled back. Sans quickly caught him with a hand on his back. "Sorry."

MK smiled. "It's all good. Happens."

Sans wondered where Frisk got her looks when both her brother and her mother were blond with large, blue eyes. He noticed a few pictures in the living room with a man he'd never met. He looked like Frisk, and he wondered if that was her dad. He asked MK about it, and he confirmed the theory.

"What happened to him?" he asked.

MK shrugged. "He died."

The kid looked down, and Sans figured it was a story he didn't want to tell. He didn't push it.

Frisk asked Tori four times if she could help with anything in the kitchen, but she was adamant that she had everything covered. Instead of insisting she help, she went out to the living room with Sans and MK to talk until dinner was ready. She noticed MK was being more shy than normal. He was usually only this way around humans. She hoped he was okay.

A while later, Tori came in and sat down next to Frisk on the couch. "About ten more minutes, guys."

Sans rubbed his hands together. "Can't wait; smells awesome."

They talked a bit longer, Tori asking Sans about his job. He talked about working at a hot dog joint near the big monster laboratory and a few other odd jobs. Frisk knew he also worked with his dad, but he never mentioned that. It was weird, Frisk thought. She also thought it was weird how quiet MK was being.

When dinner was ready, they moved into the dining room. Sans and Frisk helped move the food to the table. When everyone was served, the table was quiet for a few short minutes before Tori started asking Frisk about her job. She was no longer working at the department store. She'd gotten a new job as secretary for an up-and-coming carpenter monster. After the short interrogation, she turned her attention to MK.

"How was school this week, MK? I feel like we haven't talked all week." Tori smiled at her son.

MK grimaced. "It sucked."

Tori shot a quick glance at Sans, a little embarrassed that her son chose to sulk today. "Care to elaborate?"

Frisk frowned at her brother, worried.

Sans had thought he was just being a typical human teenager, but the look Frisk shot him told him otherwise. Maybe something was wrong.

"Not really," MK muttered.

Tori tried to leave her son alone, but she was worried about him. He had been growing increasingly distant as the weeks went on. She knew he was having a hard time in school, but she had thought they'd solved that issue when she'd had a meeting with the principal and a few of his bullies' parents.

After dinner, as Frisk and Sans cleaned up, Sans couldn't help but overhear Tori and MK in the living room.

"MK, please tell me what's wrong?"

"Mom, I'm fine, I swear. Can you just leave it alone?"

Tori sighed. "No, I can't because you're my son and I worry about you. Please?"

"Dammit, Mom! Leave me alone!" He stormed out of the room and went to sit on the back deck.

Sans and Frisk shared a look.

"I think it's happening again." Frisk sighed. "The bullying. Dammit."

Sans nodded. "Mind if I try?"

Frisk just shrugged. Tori came in the room with tears in her eyes and wordlessly began drying dishes.

"It'll be okay, Mom."

Sans watched the kid for a second through the open glass door. He sat on the first step with his head hung down. Sans stepped out, making sure to make some noise so he didn't startle the kid.

"What's buggin' ya, Kid?" Sans asked as he sat down next to MK.

MK gestured toward the door with a shoulder. "Mom doesn't care. She just wants me to think she does."

"Nah, she cares."

MK sighed and looked at the monster. "What do you want?"

Sans shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. "What does MK stand for?"

"Monster Kid," MK huffed.

Sans looked at him and shook his head. "You ain't a monster, Kid." He grinned.

"It stands for Matthias Kai. It's my dad's name, so technically I'm MK Jr, but since Dad's dead, I'm just MK."

Sans nodded. "Can I ask what happened to him?"

"You can, but it still hurts to talk about it. Ask Frisk."

"I'll do that. So, MK, What's up? Why do you think your mom doesn't care?"

He sighed. "I dunno."

Sans laughed. "You can do better than that. Either learn to lie or talk to your Uncle Sans."

MK looked over at the monster. " _Uncle Sans_?" What the hell?

Sans shrugged. "I'm tryin' to help. Life's a bitch, but it can be better if you let someone else in on it."

"You can say that again. The bitch part."

Sans snickered. "You just swore."

"So did you."

"I'm an adult."

"You sure about that? How tall are you?"

Sans raised a brow bone. "Taller than you."

"By what, a millimeter?"

Sans was having fun with this. "Height doesn't matter."

MK snorted. "Keep telling yourself that. Besides, I thought it was, 'size doesn't matter'."

"Your sister doesn't seem to mind."

MK's eyes widened. "What the fuck?"

Sans laughed out loud. "Gotcha."

MK sulked for a second. "You better not touch my sister."

"Whatcha gonna do about it if I do? 'Sides, it ain't up to me who touches her."

MK grimaced. "Can we not talk about that?"

"Sure. Tell me what's goin' on."

"Well, _Uncle Sans_ , if you really have to be so damn nosy, I'm pissed off because they're always making fun of me. I know, I should just ignore them, but do you know how hard that is to do?" He hated the hot tears that gathered in his eyes.

"Who makes fun of you? And what for?"

MK sighed. "Kids at school. They make fun of my arms. Or, well, my _lack_ of arms. They throw things at me and tell me to catch, they hold my backpack up and tell me to reach for it, they 'accidentally' trip me. I mean, what _don't_ they do?"

"Have you told anyone about it?" Sans asked. He had to work to keep his eye from glowing. He trusted Frisk, but he wasn't sure about any other human knowing about his magic, even her brother.

MK huffed. "Yeah. I've talked to teachers, Mom, the principal. They all say they'll talk to the kids, but nothing ever changes. If anything, it gets worse. I stopped saying anything about it after one of the kids tried playing dodgeball with me with a rock about a month ago."

Sans unfurled his fists and splayed his fingers out, trying hard to keep cool. "Is it just the kids that pick on you?" Thinking back to his own school experience, he knew even those who said they'd help could be just as guilty.

"No. My history teacher does this thing where he throws this stuffed animal around to kids to ask questions or choose them to answer something. He always throws it to me first, knowing I can't catch it. His aim is great with the other kids, too, but with me it almost always hits me in the head."

"That's cuz that's where he's aimin', Kid."

MK nodded. "Yeah, I guess. The lunch lady always tries to hand me things knowing I can't actually take them from her. She'll drop whatever it is in the middle of my tray. I hate it. I hate her." He took a deep breath. "It isn't every day. Most days I've got my friends around to help me. It's always worse when they're not there and I have to be assigned a 'helper'."

"Can't say I blame ya. Now, what are we going to do about all this?"

MK looked over at Sans. "What do you mean?"

Sans grinned. "Like I'm gonna let my newly adopted nephew suffer alone. We need a plan."

As it turned out, their plans were a little too devious. When their plans began to involve bloodshed, Sans had to take a step back and remember that he actually was an adult. Dammit.

"We need to have a meeting."

MK groaned. "Those never solve anything."

"You ain't never had a meeting with me, Kid. Well, I guess you kinda just did, but that's not the kind of meeting I'm talking about. Let me talk to your mom. We'll get this sorted out." He rubbed MK's shoulder for a second before standing up. He waited for MK to get up before he opened the door.

"Hey, Sans?"

He turned to look at the kid. "Yeah?"

"Thanks for not…I guess not telling me that it'll all get better eventually and to just ignore them."

Sans smiled as they walked inside. "I'm not sure what you mean, Kid. It'll get better; just ignore 'em."

MK snorted. "Shut up."

The moment the door shut behind the boys, Tori wrapped her arms around her son.

"I love you, MK," she said softly. "I really do."

MK rested his head on her shoulder for a second. "I love you, too."

She pulled back and kissed his head. He grimaced. Sans snickered, which earned him a glare from the boy.

"Is everything okay?" Frisk asked, reaching out to take Sans' arm.

"No, not really. We need to talk."

~LM~

Sans sat at the table in the principal's office, feeling a bit too smug. He should probably cool it a little bit. Nah, he decided. This was going to end, once and for all.

He looked around at the people at the table with him. He thought that if just having parents in the meeting didn't do any good, they should probably have the little shits in question sit in with them. The two biggest bullies, along with their mothers, Mr. Malone the principal, Mr. Murray the history teacher, Mrs. Curtis the lunch lady, Frisk, and Tori all sat waiting for the meeting to start.

MK had decided he was too nervous to make it to the meeting; he was scared that he'd make something worse. Sans had tried to talk him into coming, but he was adamant. The fear on the boy's face made Sans give in.

Sans took a moment to really look at the bullies. The one named Liam was blonde with blue eyes. His pale complexion was pockmarked with acne typical of his age. The other, named Jericko, was shorter with brown hair and green eyes. His face was spattered with freckles, and Sans thought he just looked mean with a permanent scowl.

"Thank you all for coming," Mr. Malone started. "It seems our last meeting didn't solve things the way we had hoped." He glanced at the mothers of the two boys. "So we're going to have another one and see if we can't get to the bottom of this."

Sans just listened for a minute as Tori explained what had been going on. The two bullies seemed proud of their work for a moment before their mothers chastised them. They promised they'd never do it again. Sans wanted to gag at how fake their promises were, and yet everyone else in the room seemed to buy it.

Everyone but Frisk. "Prove it," she said. "Prove to me right now that you're never going to hurt my brother again."

"We never hurt nobody," Jericko muttered.

Sans huffed. "Meaning you hurt somebody. We get it. Now stop it, you twit."

Everyone turned to look at Sans. Helen, Jericko's mom, stood up.

"You can't talk to my son that way," she all but yelled.

Sans just looked up at her, too comfortable in the chair to stand up. "I think I just did."

"Sans, please don't cause a scene," Tori said with a stern voice. Sans just looked over at her, not sure for a brief second whose side she was on. Wouldn't she say anything to stand up for her son? Maybe she felt like she had an image to uphold. Screw that, Sans thought. He didn't care about images.

"Yeah, Sans," Liam sneered. "Don't cause a scene."

Frisk wasn't sure where this was going, but she wasn't about to stop Sans. She kind of felt like she'd brought an attack dog with her and she was ready to set him free on these assholes.

"It's not like we hurt the little monster," Liam added. "We just, y'know…it's good for him to get used to it now, cuz it's not gonna stop when he gets into the real world." He ducked his head when the principal shot him a look. "Well, it's not."

That time Sans did stand up. "Here's the thing, though," he started, taking his time and choosing his words. "This _is_ his real world." He started walking slowly around the table to where Liam was sitting. "Do you know what it's like to be ridiculed for something you can't control? Like having a face like a pizza, perhaps?" He stopped and put his hands on the table, his face not five inches from Liam's. "You wanna know what it's like to live without arms?" He made his voice a deep growl. "I can show ya."

Liam gulped.

"Get away from my son!" Linda gasped.

Sans laughed. "I'm just teasing! No harm, right?" He took a step backward and held his hands up in a gesture of surrender. "I didn't hurt anyone. Isn't that what we're saying here, that we can tease and threaten as long as we don't actually hurt anyone?" He put his hands in his pockets. "Linda, you might want to try to teach your son some manners. He might need those when he gets into the _real world_ where people tend to get offended pretty easily. I'd hate to see him lose something more important than his arms just because he's an idiot."

"These children are not idiots," Mr. Malone said gruffly, "and I'd appreciate it if you didn't refer to them like that."

Sans smirked. "These _children_ are hurting another innocent human simply because he's different. What do they do to the monsters in this school, I wonder?" He wasn't aware that his voice was rising. "Do you even care about them? I'm thinking probably not, despite what you want to say to me right now. Don't push me. You really don't want that."

Frisk stood up and walked over to him, grabbing his arm. "Sans, calm down."

"I am calm," he snapped.

She met his eyes, his left one just a little brighter than the right.

"Please?" she asked.

He took a deep breath. "Fine."

"Why are you here, exactly?" Mrs. Curtis asked.

Sans looked over at her. "To make you stop putting this kid through hell. So he doesn't have any arms—big deal. I don't have skin. Liam doesn't have a brain. Helen doesn't have a clue how to raise a decent child. Actually, that goes for both Helen and Linda."

Helen stood up. "That is enough. I'm done with this meeting."

"Good, because I'm done with your bullshit. If I hear that anyone has hurt—physically or otherwise—MK one more time, I promise you will all have a bad time. Don't fuck with me."

"I'm really sorry," Tori said, standing up. "If I'd had known this was going to happen, I wouldn't have—"

"Invited me?" Sans interrupted. "You would rather let your own son get tormented to the point that he's not even sure you care about him anymore than stand up for him? A real great mother you are."

"Sans!" Frisk shouted. "We'll be right back." She tugged hard on his arm to get him to follow her.

Out in the hallway, he pulled away from her and ran both of his bony hands over his skull.

"What the hell was that?" Frisk tried not to yell. "Don't attack my mother."

Sans turned around. "I'm sorry, Frisk; I am. But, if she would stand up for MK a little harder than what she's doing, I can almost guarantee this shit would stop. He's your brother, for fuck's sake; don't you care—"

"You don't want to finish that sentence," Frisk warned. "I am really happy that you want to help, but you are digging a hole that MK will have to try to get out of."

Sans took a deep breath to steady his nerves. She was right. He nodded. "Okay. I'm sorry."

She walked up and hugged him tightly. "It's okay. Just please don't do that again."

He nodded again and hugged her back. "I won't."

They both took another moment to calm down before walking back in the room. Sans grinned and met both boys' eyes.

"Man, I hate losing my cool. And this is just a little meeting."

Both boys looked nervous.

"Sans," Frisk warned.

He snickered. "I'm not sorry, but I'll stop. For now."

Mr. Malone stood up. "I think what we need is a plan. MK should know he can come to me or even Mrs. Polluck, our vice principal, if anything happens." He looked over at the mothers. "Also note that I will be putting stricter punishments on any bullying I see happening."

"And anything that's reported, I hope," Sans added.

Mr. Malone nodded. "Yes. Any and all reports will be thoroughly investigated. Not just against MK, but against anyone getting harassed in my school. This will no longer be tolerated."

Sans smirked. Finally, someone seemed to be having a rational reaction.

After the meeting, Sans talked with MK for a while about what had happened. MK was amazed that Sans had actually done what he'd said he was going to do.

Frisk smiled as she watched her brother and Sans laughing together on the couch. It had been a long time since she'd seen MK so happy.

* * *

A/N: Thank you for reading! Let me know what you think of it so far. We have a loooong way to go.

Reviews are lovely.

I'm on Twitter at SheeWolf85


	7. Chapter 6

A/N: Guys, guess what? I just realized that I've reached 50 stories. Holy shit. I've written a ton of words, y'all. If you're into Grillster, maybe check out my newest oneshot, Fireproof? #selfpromotion

Anyhow, can anyone say "filler"? Cuz I can! Nah, there's real stuff here, but most of it is fluffy filler and background stuff. Enjoy!

* * *

CHAPTER SIX

After the meeting with MK's school, Frisk started seeing Sans in a different light. He was still her best friend, but he was also the bodyguard he'd promised to be and a monster MK could really look up to. They spent as much time together as possible, him coming to her house for impromptu dinners and her deciding to show up with some new treat recipe for Papyrus' sweet tooth.

Sans felt like he had to find the right time to ask her about her dad. It was obviously still a sore subject to her brother, and he didn't want to upset her by asking. He decided the time was right after having a very short discussion about his own dad.

"What happened to your dad?" he asked.

She huffed, a little miffed that he refused to give her much information. "Tell me about your dad, then we'll talk about mine."

Sans sighed. He probably should have known that would happen. "Frisk, my dad…He wouldn't want me talking about him to a human, okay? I'm sorry, but I'm only trying to be a good son."

She regarded that for a moment. She knew a lot of monsters didn't want humans to know much about them; it was a side effect of their history. Humans had enslaved their races, of course they'd want to hide from them.

She looked up at him and nodded. "My dad was killed trying to break up a fight," she finally said. "They were these stupid humans trying to hurt a monster. Dad got in the middle of it, and they killed both him and the monster."

Sans could see how that would be such a sore subject. "I'm really sorry, Frisk."

She shrugged. "It was a long time ago. MK was still a toddler. To him, Dad is like a fairy tale. I know he wishes Dad was still alive because he feels like all the bullying wouldn't happen if he was there to protect him."

He nodded and leaned forward to wrap his arm around her shoulders. "I get that. Let him know that's what I intend to do."

She smiled and hugged him back. "I will."

Frisk had gotten used to both brothers using magic when she was just with the monsters. Something sparked her curiosity a few weeks later, after she noticed Papyrus glowing both eyes with orange magic.

"Hey Sans," she asked one day as they watched a movie on her couch.

He looked at her. "Yeah?"

"Can I ask you something?"

He smirked. "You just did, dork."

She smiled back. "You're the dork. Why does Papyrus have two glowing eyes, but you only have one?"

He could feel her curiosity, and it amused him. He really wanted to tell her, but then he'd have to tell her about his dad. He really didn't want to do that yet. He decided to tell her only a little bit of the story.

"Skeletons are supposed to be able to glow both eyes," he started. "Before my parents got together, one of 'em was in an accident and lost one of their eyes. I inherited the one-eye thing. Funny thing is, when skeletons lose an eye, it usually costs them some of their power. Neither of my parents lost any power, and if I'm not at full strength I'll never know. It's kinda scary to think about me having any more magic than I already do." He grinned at her.

She couldn't help but laugh a little. "Then I assume that since Papyrus didn't come from your parents, that's why he has both eyes?"

Sans nodded. "Yep."

"Does he know anything about where he came from?"

He shrugged. "The best we can come up with, based on his fuzzy memories, is that his parents were killed. The person who killed them couldn't hurt a baby, so they decided to throw him away instead."

Frisk scowled. "That's terrible. I suppose—trying to find the silver lining here—at least he didn't die. He's so sweet."

"Yeah, he is. He's the coolest brother I have."

She snorted. "Which one of your parents was in the accident? And what happened?"

He knew she was going to ask that. He sucked in a breath. "It's kinda something I promised I'd never tell anyone about." That was only kind of a lie. He had really only promised he wouldn't tell anyone that his dad still had magic. According to the humans that had hurt him, he lost his magic after they'd scarred him.

Frisk nodded. "That's okay. You know me; I'm just nosy."

He pulled her in for a quick hug. "Yeah you are."

They would have dinners with their friends, movie nights with either just the two of them or they'd invite her brother or his, and even sleepovers.

It was their third sleepover that really got to her.

She usually stayed the night on the couch at the brothers' house. Both Papyrus and Sans had offered their beds, but she wouldn't dream of taking them. She'd be fine on the couch, she said.

The movie they'd watched that night had been a bad choice for a few reasons. The first being that it involved a rape scene that caught them all by surprise and brought back horrific memories for Frisk. The second being that it had an anti-monster rant that made Papyrus cry. They all decided they hated the movie.

As she tried to fall asleep, her mind kept replaying the scene from the movie over and over. It mixed in details from her own experience and kept her from relaxing enough to fall asleep. Eventually, fatigue won out and she did manage to pass out.

She was jolted awake by someone shaking her violently. She shrieked and reached out to smack whoever it was away from her. Her hand hit hard bone, and suddenly she was wide awake.

"Frisk?" Sans said with wide eye sockets.

Frisk was breathing heavily, sweating so hard she felt like she'd just taken a bath, and so convinced she was back in that abandoned basement. She met Sans' eyes and took a breath to steady her quivering stomach. It had been a nightmare.

"Did I hit you?" she asked, dumbfounded. Her hand throbbed.

Sans nodded. "Yeah. Didn't hurt. Are you okay?" He moved to sit next to her and pulled her close. He took her hand and kissed her knuckles before massaging them gently.

Frisk adjusted herself to cradle her face in his neck bones. "I think so. I'm sorry I woke you up."

He shook his head. "Don't worry about that. I'm just glad you're okay. I'm sorry we had to choose that fucked-up movie." He squeezed her a little tighter.

She shrugged. "Not your fault." She sucked in a deep breath and noticed—not for the first time—that he smelled really good. His scent was a mixture of citrus and cinnamon that felt like comfort incarnate.

"I know, but I'm still sorry." Sans closed his eyes and nuzzled his face against her hair. "So, I heard the hairdresser for that movie had a _brush_ with fame."

Frisk pulled back and looked up at him. She was about to ask who it was when she understood what he said. Her lips pulled up in a smile. "That was awful."

He shrugged. "I saw this movie about a beaver once. It was the best dam movie I've ever seen."

She snorted. "Sans." She couldn't help but giggle.

"Hey, did you hear about that new broom that just went on the market?"

Frisk groaned. "Don't."

Sans grinned. "It's really sweeping the nation."

She laughed out loud. "Dammit, Sans."

"What? I gotcha to laugh, didn't I?"

Frisk leaned into him and laughed again. "Yeah, you did."

They stayed in silence for a few more minutes. It wasn't until she pulled back and yawned that she realized what he was wearing.

The thin, white t-shirt flowed over his bones gracefully. She'd seen him without a jacket of some kind only a handful of times, and those times he had been in a long-sleeved sweater. She'd never seen so much exposed bone before, and for a brief moment she was concerned.

It didn't take more than a few seconds for her brain to remind herself that he was a skeleton; exposed bone equaled exposed skin on a human. She found herself admiring his structure and the way his shirt outlined him perfectly.

"You okay?" he asked; less of a question to measure her wellbeing after the nightmare and more of a question to see if she'd fallen asleep staring at his chest.

She looked up to meet his eyes and smiled. "I'm fine."

He nodded, and they both stood up. He stretched, his arms high above his head. It caused his shirt to ride up, and she couldn't help but stare. His sweat pants sat on the middle of his hips. The tops of his hipbones were clearly visible, along with his spine ascending and disappearing under his shirt. She blushed and looked down at his feet. She'd never seen him without shoes or slippers on, and somehow his bare metatarsals and phalanges were adorable to her. She wondered what the hell was wrong with her.

She looked up, surprised when Sans laughed. The humor in his eyes was unmistakable.

"You look like you've never seen bones before, Frisk." He reached out and lightly tapped her shoulder. "You have your own under all that…flesh."

He had hesitated on the word, and she could have sworn the lights in his sockets traveled over her body from head to toe before he muttered it. She was probably just being hopeful.

Frisk smiled. "Yeah, but mine won't walk around when they're exposed."

She immediately regretted what she'd said when his brow bones furrowed and he looked down.

"I'm sorry, Sans. I didn't mean anything by that." She took a step closer and put her hand on his arm.

Sans smiled at her and pulled her into a hug. "I know, Kiddo."

She took another breath of his scent and focused maybe a little too intently on the vertebrae in his neck before pulling back.

"Thank you for waking me up and making me feel better."

He nodded against her head. "Are you gonna be okay out here alone?"

She really wanted to say no. It would be an excuse to stay close to him the rest of the night. In reality, she knew she'd probably be fine. She had new things to focus on that would probably give her good dreams.

She nodded and pulled back from the hug. "I'll be okay."

It was her turn to stretch and yawn. As she stretched, her back popped in two places. She almost laughed when he cringed.

"Goodnight, Frisk. Please don't make that sound again."

She smiled. "It's not actually my bones popping."

He tilted his head to the side. "What is it?"

Although it wasn't the first time she'd had to explain human things to her skeleton friend, it was a pretty rare occurrence. "It's gasses that accumulate in the fluid between my joints. When I stretch, the gasses escape and make that sound."

Sans shuddered. "Humans are weird."

Frisk laughed out loud. That was almost always his response when she explained something about the human body.

After that night, Frisk decided that she needed to start dating again. She was certainly becoming more and more attracted to her best friend, but she wasn't sure if he felt the same way. She made it a point to dress a little nicer and spend some time on her makeup each day. She had nearly melted when Sans told her she looked nice one day. She tried to flirt with him, but when that went nowhere she decided it would be best to look elsewhere.

After two months, she'd had a handful of dates but hadn't found anyone that she actually liked enough to continue seeing. One person ended the date early when he found out her best friend was a monster. Another seemed nice enough, but he never laughed at a single pun she told. She couldn't stomach the idea of being with someone like that for a long time.

It was another month later that she decided maybe dating wasn't a thing she was going to be good at. She really thought she'd found a good one this time, as it was their second date. She dressed in a blue skirt and a white top, curled her short hair, and painted her nails. He was due to show up at seven o'clock sharp.

By seven thirty, she'd texted him three times to see if he was still going to make it.

When he still hadn't showed at eight-thirty, she decided she was done waiting for him. She sighed dejectedly and told herself it wasn't her fault.

Instead of dwelling on the weight in her chest, she texted the person she actually wanted to date.

 _How's your night going?_

She put her phone down on the table and looked at her nails. She thought she'd actually done a good job with them this time.

 _Back from your date already? It's not even nine. Is he being a douche?_

She huffed.

 _It never actually started. So yeah, he's being a douche._

She told herself she wasn't going to cry. This happened to people all the time. She pouted; it had never happened to her before.

 _He never showed?_

She sucked in a deep breath.

 _Nope. I hope your night's going better._

She got up and took off her shoes. She wasn't sure why she'd kept them on this long to begin with.

 _Meh. Are you up for company?_

She smiled to herself. Maybe Sans would come over and help cheer her up.

 _Yeah, actually I could really use some. Will you come over?_

Four minutes later there was a knock at the door. She let Sans in and hugged him tightly.

"You look nice," he said when they pulled apart. "He's missin' out."

Frisk was sure she blushed. "Thanks."

"I'm sorry the guy was an ass. You want me to track him down for ya?"

She caught the faint light in his left eye and realized he was actually upset. She shook her head. "No, but thank you. I just want someone to talk to."

He nodded and hugged her again before walking over to the couch. "Then that's what I'm here for."

They sat and talked for a while about trivial things. She tried again to flirt with him, but either she was really terrible at it and he didn't know what she was doing, or he was ignoring her advances. She gave up, not willing to embarrass herself further.

Sans decided to cheer her up by showing her a few tricks.

"You wanna see something cool?" he asked.

"That would be nice."

His left hand began to glow. She watched in awe as the flame in his palm shifted and twirled, taking the shape of a blue lily. Light danced around the outside, and the inside of the flower began to turn purple, spreading outward across the petals and blending with the blue of his magic.

"That's so beautiful," she breathed. She reached out to touch it. Her fingertips touched the petals gently. She was surprised when a hot shock went up through her fingertips. They both gasped, and she pulled back quickly.

He curled his fingers and the magic was gone. "Is your hand okay?" he asked.

"Yeah. I can still feel it; like it's a tingle up to my elbow." She rubbed her arm.

He smirked. "Me too. I didn't expect you to touch it like that, so I wasn't as gentle as I should have been."

"I'm sorry—Wait, you felt it, too?"

He shrugged. "Yeah. My magic is part of my soul. When I put so much of it in one spot like that, to make something, it's pretty sensitive. I can control how…I guess how intense it is; the emotion behind it. Weapons are a little different; they come from a different part of my soul. With stuff like this, the more intensity I put into it, the stronger I can feel it. I wouldn't summon anything that could really hurt you, Frisk. I just didn't expect that. You wanna see another one?"

She nodded eagerly.

The flame engulfed his hand once again. This time, it swirled into the shape of a dragonfly. The wings' color drained to a pale, near translucent turquoise while the body darkened to indigo. The wings fluttered briefly twice.

She laughed joyfully. "Oh, Sans…this is wonderful."

He loved the spark of happiness in her eyes.

"I'm glad I can share this with you."

She met his eyes and sighed happily. "Me too."

* * *

A/N: I just love learning new stuff about monster magic and how they can use it/what they can do with it.

Thank you for reading! Reviews are lovely; I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I'm on Twitter at SheeWolf85 – come talk to me!


	8. Chapter 7

A/N: So, hopefully it's not confusing, but I wanted to let y'all know that when you see the divider bar within the chapter, it means there's a flashback going on. The rest of my scene dividers are the ~LM~ things. Enjoy!

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CHAPTER SEVEN – A Year Later

Frisk sighed as she unlocked the door to her apartment and stepped inside. She shut it behind her and rested back against it for a moment before she stepped away, locked it, and put her keys on the table to her immediate left. She shook her head and sighed again as she removed her coat and hung it in the closet.

Man, this world was so fucked up.

It never failed to surprise her how many humans there were in the world who were still upset about monsters living freely among them.

She scowled to herself as she remembered the comments she'd heard on her way home. Being close to monsters as she was, she was a target of some fierce discrimination. She tried to ignore it, but when she was stopped in the road so they could ask her what it was like to be a trash-fucker, she couldn't help but get her feelings hurt.

She didn't care that some humans thought she was in a serious relationship with monsters. If she had her way, she and Sans would be married by now and very, very familiar with each other's bodies. But, she didn't have her way; she was just a friend to him and she had to make that okay.

No, it wasn't those parts of the comments that hurt her. It was their opinion of monsters that did it. Monsters weren't trash.

She stepped into the living room and stopped when she saw the familiar skeleton on her couch. He was sprawled out, taking up the whole length of the couch. One arm was up with his hand under his head while the other rested on his chest. The white shirt he was wearing was thin, but it was enough to hide the bones underneath it.

She smiled at the sight, letting her eyes graze slowly down his figure. He was wearing his trademark black basketball shorts. They always looked too big for him, and yet no matter how many laws of physics they seemed to break, they stayed up around his hips. Her eyes continued down his legs. One leg was pulled up, his knee near the top of the couch. It caused his shorts to ride up, giving her a really good view of his strong femur. His other leg was stretched out over the opposite arm of the couch. His feet were covered in his pink, fluffy slippers.

She licked her lips and let her eyes trail slowly back up his body, stopping at places she knew were inappropriate. She shouldn't be ogling him like this. But dammit, she couldn't help it.

His eyes were closed as he snored softly, letting out small, nearly inaudible snorts each time he inhaled. She wasn't entirely sure how or why the skeleton monster needed to breathe, but all the same it was comforting to listen to him.

She sighed for a completely new reason and shifted her weight to lean against the wall. She couldn't help but think back on the last two years and how their friendship had grown. She had wanted to tell him about her feelings for him, but every time she tried to flirt or somehow show her affection he wouldn't respond the way he should have if he felt the same way. She was always too nervous to push things further for fear that it would put a strained distance between them.

Frisk shook herself from her memories and walked over to get the blanket off the back of the recliner. She draped it over Sans as gently as she could, hoping to not wake him. He moved just slightly, his hips raising as he shifted.

Her hands froze as she stared at his body again. In the beginning, she never would have imagined herself being attracted to a skeleton. He was—quite literally—just bones. And yet here she was, staring down at her best friend with lust tugging at her belly because he had lifted his hips. It wasn't like he had anything there to…

Well, she didn't know that for sure. She'd never seen him completely naked, so how could she know? She found herself suddenly curious about skeleton genitals. Her body went from ten to one hundred in three seconds flat as she imagined some form of—

Sans shifted again, and she realized she had been standing over him, staring and fantasizing about skeleton penises. She took a deep breath and walked away before she could do any more damage. How would she feel if she had been ogled in her sleep by her best friend?

 _Pretty damn lucky is how I'd feel_ , she thought to herself.

She went into the kitchen to start preparing dinner. She knew that was why he was here to begin with. They hadn't set up plans, but he still showed up spontaneously for dinner. It was always a welcome surprise, and she made sure to let him know that so he wouldn't stop.

~LM~

Dinner was done. Sans was still asleep on the couch. Frisk moved the pan to an unheated burner on the stove and turned to go wake up her friend.

He hadn't moved an inch from the last time she'd checked on him. She almost didn't want to wake him up because he looked so peaceful. She had once wondered if he had a job because he seemed to have all the time in the world to spend with her. When she learned that he not only had a job, but worked three different ones, she felt bad for asking him to come over so often.

Sans squashed that really fast. He said the only job that he really needed was the one he worked with his dad, which was pretty much on his own time. The other two were because he was often bored. He had joked that they weren't even real jobs, but she knew better.

She still didn't know what he did with his dad. She'd never met his dad, and the few times that she'd asked about it he'd changed the subject. He was usually so open about everything, so she figured he had a good reason to keep that part of his life away from her. Of course, that didn't make her any less curious.

She reached out and shook his shoulder gently.

"Hey, Sleepy Bones. It's time to wake up."

Sans shifted and turned over so he was facing the back of the couch, curling up a little. "No," he mumbled into the cushion.

Frisk giggled. "Yes. Dinner's ready."

He cracked one eye open and peeked up at her. "What's on the menu?"

His voice was low with sleep, and it made her tummy flutter pleasantly. She cleared her throat and took a step backward.

"I made some chicken alfredo."

He hummed with appreciation and sat up slowly. "How long was I out?" The words were distorted with a yawn and he began to stretch.

She averted her eyes and told herself not to blush. "I'm not sure? When did you get here?"

He thought about that for a second. "I think somewhere around five. Work was exhausting today, so I just came here after I'd helped Dad with a…something." He looked down for a brief second before he stood up and smiled at her. "Welp, I'm starving. Let's eat." He rubbed his hands together, his phalanges clacking gently.

Deciding now was not a good time to ask again what he did with his dad, she led the way to the kitchen and watched as he helped her set the table.

They ate in near silence for a while, but it was comfortable. Frisk watched him bring the food to his mouth. She had often wondered how he ate since whatever he put in his mouth just seemed to disappear. Papyrus was the same way. The other monsters she'd had dinner with seemed to do it much the same as she did—shovel food in, chew, and swallow. She figured Sans and Papyrus were different because they were skeletons.

"How is it?" she asked after a few minutes.

Sans looked at her. "Nastiest thing I've ever eaten." He smirked.

She smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

After dinner, the two moved back out to the living room. Frisk couldn't keep her eyes off of him. She knew eventually he was going to suspect something was up if she couldn't control herself, but he was too nice to look at.

Sans took her hand and held it on his lap. "Frisk, is everything okay?" he asked gently.

She looked up and met his eyes. The lights in his sockets were glowing softly with concern and something else she wasn't really sure how to place.

She swallowed and nodded. "Yeah, I guess I've just been tired lately." This couldn't happen now, she thought. Not yet. She wasn't ready.

He quirked his mouth in an expression of doubt. "I've seen you so damn tired you literally pass out. I've seen you exhausted-tired after being so sick you could hardly sleep for a week. I've _also_ seen you drunk-tired. This isn't just tired. What's going on?"

Frisk sucked in a deep breath and took a few more minutes to look at him. "There's something I've wanted to tell you for a while now." She could hardly believe she'd actually said that sentence. Ready or not, it was happening.

Sans brought her hand up to his teeth and gave her a small kiss. "I'm here. Talk to me."

Butterflies danced a hardcore Russian Cossack dance in her stomach and her mouth started to feel a little too dry.

She nodded to let him know that she was willing to tell him, but had to take a few moments to figure out how she would say what she needed to say. The fear that he would not only reject her advances but also pull back from their friendship caused her already heated face to burn a little hotter with anxiety. She had tried on and off to flirt with him or make him realize how she felt for a _year_. If he hadn't responded, he didn't feel the same.

"I'm really nervous about this, Sans." She met his eyes again and tried to blink back the tears that had already started to gather.

His brow bones lifted in a concerned expression. "I'm getting really nervous about this, too, Kiddo. Did I do something?"

Sans thought back on the last several months of their friendship. He wondered if she could tell his feelings for her had been mutating. He had tried so hard to keep his intentions platonic, but after Undyne had planted the seed three months ago, there was no going back.

* * *

"She got home safely," Sans said when he returned from taking Frisk home.

Papyrus had already spent a lot of time with her loved her charming little face. She laughed at his brother's horrific puns, but also complimented his cooking. She was certainly okay in his book.

Alphys sat on Undyne's lap and gently picked at a claw as she spoke gingerly. "That's g-good. She seems…um…really nice. I think I l-like her."

"You what?!" Undyne all but shouted.

Alphys looked up, shocked. "Not like that!" Even though she knew her girlfriend was joking, the sudden roar in her ear had scared her.

Undyne laughed. "Well, duh. I was playin'." She hugged Alphys tightly, causing a squeak to emerge from the yellow monster. "I know you have eyes only for me."

Alphys turned her head and place a kiss on Undyne's cheek. "You're right."

Undyne kissed her back, not holding back at all.

Sans gagged. "Get a fuckin' room, you two."

"Swear jar!" Papyrus yelled.

Sans shot him a look.

Undyne chortled. "Like you haven't been thinking about doing that to the human all damn night."

Alphys blushed and tried to hide her face in Undyne's shoulder.

Sans stared, wide-eyed and speechless for a second.

"I-I beg your pardon?" he finally stuttered.

"OH, MY GODS!" Papyrus shouted. "Undyne, you made him go proper!"

Undyne and Alphys laughed together. Sans was still not sure what to say.

"You've wanted to kiss her all night, Sans. I know these things." She puffed out her chest like she was proud of herself when in reality it was Alphys who had pointed it out to her.

Sans wasn't sure what to think of this new discovery. He realized with a strange sort of awe that Undyne was right. He tried to play it cool. He snorted. "The only reason you even what a kiss is, is because Alphys literally smacked you in the face with one."

Alphys blushed again.

Undyne shrugged. "Yeah, so? It's not like you can't have a battle of kisses. Right, babe?"

None of them expected Alphys to be able to turn a brighter orange, but she managed it. She tried to hide in Undyne's shoulder again, but Undyne poked her side and made her let out another squeak.

Sans didn't want to think about his friends doing that. Although, the idea of vying for the dominant kisser with Frisk…it had never crossed his mind before, but suddenly, he couldn't get it out of his head. To be honest, he wasn't even sure how he would kiss her. He really wanted to find out.

He tried not to give anything away when he saw Frisk again. He couldn't help but stare at her lips, wondering what they would feel like pressed against his mouth. They looked like they'd be soft, moist…warm, even.

What had started with a fascination with her lips soon grew to be a curiosity about her entire body. He liked how it felt to hug her against him. She was mostly squishy with some hard spots where her bones were closer to the outer edge of her body. He had grown very fond of touching her shoulders, knees, elbows…everywhere he could feel her skeleton.

And yet, he also found that he wanted to explore the fleshy parts of her. She was ticklish, so he only got to touch her stomach and sides when they had tickle wars. He'd pinch her cheeks whenever he got the chance just to remind himself what they felt like. She hated the action, so he had to pick and choose those moments carefully.

She had asked him several times during one visit if he was okay. He seemed distant, she'd said. He had been thinking about what it might be like to feel the lumps on her chest like he'd seen people do in the movies. She seemed concerned about him. From then on, he made sure to keep his fantasies better hidden.

* * *

Frisk shook her head, bringing Sans back to the present. "No, you didn't do anything. It's actually me that did something."

She pulled his hand onto her lap and looked down, focusing intently on his phalanges and how they connected together.

Sans waited as patiently as he could. He almost wanted to put her in judgement just to see what she was feeling so guilty about, but he refused to do that to her. She would tell him soon enough, he told himself. He couldn't help but feel more and more nervous as the seconds ticked on.

"I'm so sorry, Sans. I'm actually really scared about how you'll react." She swallowed hard and looked back up at him. "Will you promise me something?"

He shifted a little, her words not doing anything to quell his anxiety. "I'll do my best."

"Promise me you won't…I don't even know, dammit. Promise me that what I'm about to say won't affect our friendship. I love spending time with you and your friends, and it would kill me if something I did ruined that."

Okay, that was not comforting. Instead of accepting the promise, Sans took his hand back from her.

"Frisk, what did you do?"

She looked up, surprised at his demanding tone. His left eye was burning, showing her just how serious he was.

Her breath was shaky as she drew it in and closed her eyes tightly. "I fell in love with you," she blurted.

The silence that followed was deafening. Frisk didn't dare open her eyes to see what was going on. The couch was still slightly depressed from his weight, so she knew he was at least still there.

Sans didn't know how to react for a second. On one hand, her confession was the last thing he had expected to hear, and it shocked him to say the least. On the other hand, he had literally been preparing to judge her soul because she fell in love with someone. Not just _someone_ …him.

Frisk let out the breath she'd been holding when she felt warm phalanges on her chin, urging her to look at her friend. She opened her eyes and looked up at him, worried about what she'd see in his face. Instead of disgust or apathy like she'd been so scared of, she saw comfort.

"How could I be mad at you for that?" he asked sincerely. "I mean, really? You had me worried you'd gone out and committed some kind of awful crime against monster-kind."

She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry."

He shrugged and moved closer to put his arm around her shoulders. "Don't be." He took a deep breath and smiled at her. "How long have you felt that way?" He looked at her lips. Maybe now he could kiss her.

"A long time." She shrugged. "Like over a year."

"What?" He leaned back, more than a little surprised. "You never told me?"

"I tried…kind of. I guess I don't really know how to flirt very well. Did you ever notice me touching you more, or trying to find ways to be as near to you as I could?"

He felt like an idiot. "Yeah, but I just figured you were cold when you did that."

She smiled sadly. "Like I said, I don't know how to flirt."

"Over a year. Damn. And I thought _I_ had it bad." He shook his head.

Frisk looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"I've been thinking about you differently the last few months," he confessed. He took her hand again. "It started after Undyne told me I wanted to kiss you. Turns out, she was right. By the way, I think I'm falling in love with you, too."

She stared into his eye sockets for a moment, hoping he actually meant what he'd just said. She didn't see anything but sincerity.

"Really?" She had to be sure.

"Really."

She smiled brightly and leaned into his shoulder. She felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of her entire body. In its place, giddiness began building. She hugged him tightly and nearly squealed from delight as his arms constricted around her.

A moment later, she pulled back to look at him again. She just wanted to see his face. It seemed she suddenly felt like she couldn't get enough of just looking at him.

"Can I kiss you?" Sans asked.

She nodded faster than she'd actually processed the thought of how it would happen.

"I don't have any idea what I'm doing," he confessed. "I mean, I know how you humans do it, but I'm clearly lacking in the lip department."

"Let's just try this." She leaned forward and pressed her lips to the front of his teeth. It was awkward for a second before she felt the warmth of his magic press back softly.

They both closed their eyes and enjoyed the moment.

Sans could hardly believe his luck. Her lips were every bit as soft and warm as they looked. It took nothing at all to connect his magic with her the way he would have connected with another monster. Once he figured out it wasn't actually anything new to him, he relished in the new confidence.

* * *

A/N: Aww, kisses!

Thanks for reading! Reviews are lovely; I'd love to hear your thoughts.

And come chat with me on Twitter! I'm at SheeWolf85


	9. Chapter 8

A/N: So I just now realized that I didn't update this story on Wednesday! I'm sorry! I'll still update on Sunday like usual, but here's something to make up for Wednesday. Enjoy!

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CHAPTER EIGHT

Frisk stood in front of her mirror and analyzed her appearance. She'd chosen a black dress she hadn't worn in years, and luckily, it still fit her. The sleeves were long, and the front came up to her neck, but the skirt ended just above her knees. The back swept down to the small of her back. She'd done her hair up in a bun and added a few little beaded barrettes to make it look more elegant. Her makeup was done subtly, knowing that Sans preferred her with no makeup at all. She refused to leave her house tonight without it.

She left her legs bare and wore a pair of black heeled sandals. She turned just enough to inspect the side view. She had to admit—she looked nice.

It had been a week since she'd confessed she'd fallen in love with Sans. Tonight, he was taking her on their first date. She was so excited, she could feel her insides vibrating.

She smiled to herself and turned to walk out to the kitchen. Sans would be there in a few minutes to take her…somewhere. He refused to tell her where they were going. He asked only if she trusted him, which, of course, she did.

She was nearly finished putting her ID in her clutch purse when there was a knock at the door. She could hardly control the burst of energy that threatened to knock her on her ass. Instead of running at the door, she took a second to do a happy dance. After she managed to suppress a screech of excitement, she smoothed down the front of her dress, cleared her throat, and went to open the door.

Sans stood there wearing something she didn't even know he owned. He had on nice black slacks and a black jacket over a white shirt with a blue tie that matched the color of his magic. Even with the respectable clothes, she had almost expected to see fluffy slippers on his feet. Instead, he had on a pair of shiny black dress shoes.

"Can I come in?" he asked with a smirk.

Frisk shook her head. "Nope. I'm sorry, Sans. I'm not sure I can handle you tonight. You look _hot_." She nearly laughed at the blue that crept up on his cheekbones.

He coughed and pushed his way past her gently. Once the door was shut, he took a moment to look her over.

"And what do you mean I look hot? Have you seen yourself? Damn, Kidduh—I mean, uh…Frisk." He reached out and touched her shoulder lightly. He realized then that she was a little taller than normal. He glanced down at her feet. "You gonna be okay walkin' in those?"

Frisk blushed brightly. "I'm sure I'll be fine. So where are we going?"

He shook his head and just held out his arm. "I can't tell you until we get there."

With a skeptical gleam in her eye, she took his arm. "Why do I feel like you're not telling me because you know I'll back out?"

He smirked at her as she locked the door.

"Nah. You'll have a skele- _ton_ of skele- _fun_."

She snorted. "I didn't realize I was in for such a pun time."

He smiled proudly. "You kiddin' me? It's always a pun time around me."

They talked about their days as they walked, arm in arm.

Frisk hadn't enjoyed one minute of her time at work, but had rejoiced when she was able to leave and get ready for their date. She admitted to having her outfit picked out three days in advance.

Sans had a tough time with his dad at work once he let it slip that he had a date. He had failed—purposely—to tell his elder that he even had an interest in anyone.

"You never told him about me?" Frisk asked, hurt. Two years into their friendship, and his dad didn't even know about her.

He looked at her sincerely. "He knows about you, Frisk, just not that I was interested in you like that."

She nodded, feeling a little better.

His dad had hounded him for an hour straight until Sans finally cracked and told him it was the first date with his human friend. He then had to endure an hour of the silent treatment followed by two hours of lecture about how a monster-human relationship was unnatural and would never last.

Frisk flinched. "Your dad is one of _those_ people?" She never would have guessed after seeing how chill Sans was and how much Papyrus loved her.

Sans sighed. "Yeah, but he has his reasons, Frisk. He didn't learn it from his parents like humans do; he had some…really awful things happen to him."

Frisk nodded again. "I'm sorry to hear that, Sans. All the same, I'm glad you didn't let him talk you out of this."

"I'd never dream of it. I respect my old man, but he doesn't own me. In the end, I know he just doesn't want me to get hurt." He shrugged.

She hugged his arm a little tighter. "In that respect we agree, because I don't want you to get hurt either. But don't worry; I'll protect you."

Sans wiped his frontal bone. "Oh, thank the gods. I was really worried there for a minute."

He slowed down and stopped in front of a small building. The front was mostly brick with wooden accents. A large window next to the door showed dimmed lights and patrons dressed up for their evenings sitting down together and sipping drinks. A sign above the door read 'Grillby's.'

"Is this where we're going?" she asked, a little excited.

"Yep. Best damn burgers in town." He stepped forward and opened the door for her.

Frisk had heard of this place through Undyne and Alphys. It was where they'd had their first date. It was best known as a bar, but also served food and had what Undyne described as a 'pretty cool' dance floor. Anything remotely cool to Undyne that wasn't battle- or Alphys-related was worth checking out. She wondered if Sans was going to ask her to dance with him tonight.

They walked in, and Sans led her up to the bar. As they walked through, Frisk looked around at the monsters all around her. Some looked like they were just there for the bar, some dressed up for date night, and some just hanging out with friends. A few different species of monsters were on the dance floor, showing off their moves to the beat. She noticed a few staring at her as she sat down next to Sans.

"Hey, Grillby."

She turned her attention back to her date when she heard him call out to who she assumed was the owner.

A tall fire monster walked up to them. She was almost surprised to see him dressed so elegantly in a white button-up and black pants. For a brief moment, she wondered how the clothes didn't burn.

"Who's this?" Grillby nodded toward Frisk.

She was also surprised at his voice. She'd seen fire monsters before, but never heard them speak. She had even wondered if they were able to speak. Indeed, Grillby could; his voice sounded like the smooth comfort of a campfire on a cool autumn evening.

Sans proudly put his arm around her shoulders. "This is Frisk; my girlfriend and date for the night." He leaned in and placed a kiss on her cheek. His magic left a warm tingle, and she smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Frisk." Grillby held out his hand for a half a second before he thought better of it.

Frisk wasn't sure if he was reluctant because he'd burn her or because he didn't trust humans. She looked at Sans for guidance.

"She won't mind, Grillbz." He nodded toward the fire monster.

"Nice to meet you, too," Frisk said and held out her hand.

She wasn't sure how, but she could sense the smile on his face as he reached out and shook her hand. His flames were certainly hotter than Sans' magic, but they didn't burn. She watched her hand in his for a brief moment before he pulled back. She smiled at him, already beyond fascinated.

"What'll it be tonight?" Grillby asked.

"The usual for me," said Sans. He turned to Frisk. "A burger and fries. I'm easy."

She snickered. "Don't let that get around."

Sans snorted. "What, you don't want the competition?"

She glared at him. "There better not _be_ any competition."

Sans laughed and tightened his arm around her. "Is that a threat?" Maybe sitting at the bar wasn't the best idea; he couldn't pull her in close like he wanted to.

She refused to look at him, even though she knew he was only joking. "I don't make threats, Sans. Besides, I'm easy, too. Burger and fries as well, please."

Grillby crackled a little in what Frisk assumed was humor as he nodded and stepped away.

Sans was intrigued. "If you don't make threats, what do you make?" He could feel the dangerous territory he was stepping into, but he just couldn't stop himself.

She glanced at him sideways. "Promises."

He couldn't help but get a little excited. "Okay, what would you promise to do if there was competition?"

That time she did turn to look at him. "Depends on the competition. Human or monster?"

"Monster of course. Humans are weird."

She huffed. "Excuse me?"

"Yeah. You're weird. You crack when you stretch, and don't even get me started on how many ways you leak; that's just not normal."

She laughed. "Well, in the case of monster competition, I would simply have to remind you who's the best kisser."

He nodded slowly, contemplating her answer. "Monsters tend to be pretty good kissers."

She could practically feel him goading her on. She wasn't sure what he was after, but she decided she'd follow him.

"How many humans have you kissed?"

He pretended to ponder that for a minute. "Um…" He held out a few fingers, pretending to count and run out of digits. "None."

She scoffed. "You kissed me!" She wasn't sure why she was upset at that. She knew he was playing with her, but somehow what he'd said hurt.

Sans realized he'd crossed a line and made an attempt at a pout. "That was…" he wanted to say something along the lines of that not being a real kiss, but he could see that he'd actually upset her, so he decided to play it safe. "That was a pretty good kiss, too."

Frisk took a breath and smiled at him. "Yeah, it was."

"What if we take our food to a booth and have a repeat performance?"

She could live with that. She nodded.

After Grillby set their plates down, they took them over to an empty booth near the back wall. She could feel eyes on them as they did.

Sans scooted in next to Frisk and put his arm around her again. This was much better, he thought. He pulled her in tightly and pressed his teeth to the side of her head.

"Thank you for coming with me tonight."

She looked at him and met the lights in his eye sockets. "Thank you for inviting me." She looked around and noticed a few monsters look away quickly. "Why are they looking at us like that?"

Sans looked around and sighed. "Don't worry, Frisk. They're just not used to seeing humans here, especially like this. On a date with a monster, I mean."

She nodded. "So, they're not upset that I'm here?"

"I wouldn't care if they were. They wouldn't try to hurt you, if that's what you're scared of. First of all, Grillby doesn't let allow that kind of thing in his establishment. Second, monsters are relatively peaceful; we don't seek out violence the way humans tend to do."

She nodded again. "Thank you."

They stared at each other for a few silent seconds before Frisk leaned in and pressed her lips to his teeth. His magic pressed back gently. She closed her eyes and shifted to get just a little closer. His arm tightened around her. She never would have imagined that a simple, closed-mouth kiss could feel so good.

She pulled back and stared into his eyes again for a moment.

"Encore?" he whispered softly.

She smiled and pulled back. "But I'm hungry." She noticed his teeth and snorted. "And you are now wearing lipstick."

His cheekbones turned a light blue and he grabbed a napkin. "You're not allowed to kiss me again until the lip stuff's gone." He looked at her, a little shocked at himself that he'd actually said that. "I'm not even close to serious; please don't believe me."

She laughed out loud at that. "As much as that shade suits you, Sans, it does look a little off."

She helped him remove the lipstick from his teeth and then took hers off. She reached in her clutch and took out some Chapstick instead.

Frisk had to agree that the burgers were the best in town. She nearly choked as she watched Sans bathe his fries in ketchup. He grinned and reminded her that there had never been a more heavenly condiment. In his opinion, ketchup could go on anything. She felt a challenge coming on.

"What about pickles?"

He glanced at her. "Yeah, duh."

Okay. "Ice cream."

"Name a flavor; the answer is probably yes."

She grimaced. "Ew. Pie?"

"Yep."

"Sushi."

He looked at her as though she'd sprouted another head. "Who eats that shit?"

"I do."

He grimaced. "You're weird."

"So we've established. I found something you won't put ketchup on, though." She smiled proudly.

He huffed in defeat. "You won. Waddaya want, a gold medal?"

She hugged his arm. "Nope, but I do want a prize."

"And…what might that be?" He had a few ideas spinning in his head, not all of them innocent.

She smiled at him again. "A dance."

"I was afraid you'd ask for that." He grimaced at her again. "Eat your burger."

She grinned and pulled back to finish her dinner.

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much for reading! I'd love to know your thoughts.


	10. Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

After they'd finished eating, Frisk turned slightly to lean back against him. He put his arm around her shoulders and hugged her lightly.

"D'you want that dance now, or should we wait?"

The music was pulsing through the place, lights flashing around the dance floor for those that wanted to take advantage of the hip-hop beat.

Frisk looked up at him and scrunched her nose. "Probably wait. I don't think these heels are suited for this kind of dancing.

He nodded. "You could take them off."

"Yeah, but I can't dance like that anyway."

He smiled at her and pressed his teeth to her forehead. "Dammit; I was really hoping I'd get to see you do some breakdancing tonight."

She snorted. "In this dress?"

"Yeah, maybe not. That skirt's a bit short for that. Maybe we should wait for a slower song."

She nodded and rested her head against his chest. "Agreed."

While they waited, they talked about their plans for the week ahead. Frisk had some business she needed to finish at work before the following weekend that she was a little stressed about. Sans had to find some extra time to help his dad out with something at the lab.

"Lab?" She was nearly desperate to know what kind of work they did in a lab. She knew he wouldn't tell her about that, but maybe she could get other information. "What's your dad's name?"

He hesitated for a few minutes, shifting his weight before he answered.

"Gaster."

She nodded and moved back enough to look at him again. "Why don't you want me to know about him?"

He looked down at the table for a minute before he took in a deep breath.

"It's not that I don't want you to know about him. It really would be a lot easier for me if I could just introduce you two and not have to keep anymore secrets. What I can tell you is that my dad is a genius. I'm his assistant sometimes; I help around in the lab when he needs me. I can't tell you a lot about his work, okay? He's not doing anything bad, he just doesn't like humans to know about it. I can tell you that he helps monsters a great deal. He's not the freak you'll read about if you search him up."

She nodded. "Why would I search him up?"

"Because you're curious and you'd find a lot of results. I mean, don't do it. Please? Just trust me that he's a good guy." He met her eyes pleadingly.

"I won't do that, Sans. I do trust you."

"Promise?"

She hugged his chest. "I promise."

He squeezed her back. "Thank you."

He pulled away from her and started to get up. It took her a second to understand why. He held out his hand.

"May I have this dance?" he asked.

She grinned and put her hand in his. "I'd love that."

He pulled her up to him and led the way to the dance floor. The song playing still had a beat, but it managed to be slow enough to allow for couples to hold each other close.

Frisk shivered with delight when he pulled her close. The warmth of his fingers on her back filled her with happiness. She put both of her hands on his shoulders and stepped just a little closer. He smiled at her as they began to sway to the beat.

She had never been a very good dancer. She at least managed to keep from stepping on his toes, but she could already tell he was much better than she was.

"You're trying too hard," he said softly. "Just relax and follow my lead."

So he'd noticed. She blushed and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I haven't been dancing in years."

He smiled and pulled her close enough to feel her against his chest. "Don't apologize. Just have fun."

She nodded and took a deep breath as she tried to let her muscles loosen up. She could do this.

Once she'd let go a little she realized that he was holding out on her. He began to loosen up himself and move a little more fluidly. By the end of the song, she was certain he'd taken dance lessons at some point in his life. She decided to ask him about it.

He laughed as he led her back to the table. "No, I'm just that good."

She gave him a skeptical stare. "No you're not."

His brow bones rose. "What, just because I'm all bones means I can't be a naturally good dancer?"

"That's not what I meant. You might be all bones, but that means you're also all joints and those joints can _move_."

He huffed a laugh and smiled softly. "You ain't seen nothin' yet." He winked at her.

A light pink graced her cheeks. Of course her mind had to take her _there_. "What do you mean?" she asked, her throat a bit dry.

Blue brushed his cheekbones at the look on her face. "Uh…just that I, um…" he cleared his throat and ate a fry. "I like to dance, and I may have taught myself a thing or two by using Paps as my guinea pig partner." He shrugged like that was no big deal.

Frisk leaned into him and hugged his arm. "That is a sight to imagine. How did you manage to lead someone two feet taller than you?"

Sans smiled down at her. "He wasn't always taller than me."

She realized that he must have taught himself a while ago. She nuzzled her face against his shoulder bone and pulled back.

"Well, it worked. Can we go dance again?"

The song playing wasn't slow by any means. Sans grinned and got up, held a hand out for her, and led her back to the dance floor.

~LM~

Frisk's feet had never hurt so badly in all her life as they finally made their way up the steps to her apartment.

"I may never walk again," she complained.

Sans had offered to carry her, but she wouldn't let him. As much as she really wanted to know what that felt like, she was worried about being too heavy for him.

"Next time don't wear two-inch heels," he said.

She glowered at him. "Next time tell me if we're going dancing."

He shrugged. "We didn't have to dance that much. You asked for it."

Once the door was unlocked, she turned back to him. "Do you want to stay for a minute?"

The question was out before she realized what she'd said. Her whole face turned red. "I mean…not for…I just thought." _Oh, hell_.

Sans touched her cheek. "I'd love to stay for a minute." He leaned in and kissed her. "No motives here, okay? I just don't wanna say goodbye yet."

His words soothed her, and she nodded before turning to let them both in. Once inside, she took off her shoes and set them aside. She groaned as she sat on the couch and crossed her right foot over her left knee to rub it.

Sans sat next to her and gently pulled her foot. "Come here. Let me do that."

She scrunched her nose. "You don't want to touch my gross, sweaty feet."

He smirked. "I've already accepted that you leak in weird ways, remember? Come on; I'm rubbing your feet."

She shrugged and turned so she could put her feet in his lap and lay back against the arm of the couch. She hummed with bliss as his fingers smoothly massaged her aches away.

He couldn't help but look her over, starting from her feet in his lap and slowly letting his eyes graze up her legs. Her skirt had ridden up a little and he realized with they way her legs were parted, he could see her panties if he let himself look. He moved his eyes up, refusing to do that to her. Her dress hugged her form, and his eyes followed the smooth curve of her sides up to the swell of her breasts. Her arms were up, folded under head. Her eyes were closed, and her lips pulled up in a tiny smile.

"Feel good?" he asked as he continue massaging.

Frisk nodded. "Yes, that feels amazing."

After a few minutes, Sans let his left hand graze gently up her right leg to her knee, then back down. She opened her eyes and looked at him with a soft gaze. He figured he wasn't in trouble if she didn't say anything, so he did it again, massaging her leg this time. Her smiled widened. He did it again, but with the other leg.

"I kinda figured your legs might be sore, too."

"You were right."

He smiled smugly. "Of course I was."

She stuck her tongue out at him and smiled when he seemed at a loss for words.

Sans thought for a second before an idea came to him. His he started to build something with his magic.

Frisk was a little surprised to see his eye glowing, but then he opened his mouth and stuck out a blue tongue. She snorted. The fire went out and he continued to rub her feet.

She sucked in a yawn. "I'm tired."

He nodded. "Just relax."

They sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes as Sans thought about their night. It had turned out even better than he had hoped for. She insisted that she didn't know how to dance, but the way she shook her ass on the dance floor told him otherwise. He had caught others looking at her as well but had refrained from getting possessive. He just felt prouder to call her his girlfriend.

A soft noise caught his attention and he looked over at her. He smiled; she was asleep, snoring quietly. He figured he probably should have left when she said she was tired, but he just couldn't say goodbye yet. He wanted to spend every waking moment with her.

With a sigh, he gently moved her feet off him so he could stand up. He contemplated just leaving, but he couldn't. He gently scooped her up and carried her back to her bedroom. As he laid her down on her bed, she squirmed and opened her eyes.

"Sans?" Frisk wasn't sure what was going on, but all of a sudden, she was in her bed with Sans' face right in front of hers. Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

The action caught him off guard, and he lost his balance and fell down all but on top of her. He told himself he should stop this in its tracks. He really should get home. Papyrus would worry. She was tired. It had only been their first date.

All of the excuses he thought of weren't good enough to get him to pull away. Instead, he pulled her close to him and kissed her back. He couldn't get enough of the feel of her body close to him, the way her fingers gripped the back of his shirt, and the eager push of her lips against his teeth.

Frisk was caught up in the smell and feel of him. She'd wanted him in her bed for months and now that they were here she couldn't bring herself to move slowly. She opened her mouth and licked him, pulling back when he stiffened.

"Is that okay?" she asked, meeting the lights in his eye sockets.

Sans swallowed thickly. He wasn't sure how to answer that. It was absolutely okay, but he hadn't expected anything like this until a few dates into their relationship.

"I, um…" He _so_ wanted to continue, but what if she regretted something? He tried to reason that a kiss wouldn't hurt anything, but he knew better. Kisses like this would lead to wandering hands, which would either lead to undressing or an angry Frisk. His soul tugged at him to continue, already heated with lust.

Frisk smiled softly. "It's okay if you don't want that right now." She let her fingers loosen on his shirt and smoothed it down softly. As much as she wanted to continue and never, ever stop, she couldn't bear the thought of his discomfort.

"It's not that, Frisk." He kissed her gently. "I want that right now, but I'm…nervous."

She nodded slightly. "That's okay. What are you nervous about?" She brought a hand up to gently caress the back of his skull.

Sans shivered as her fingertips caused another wave of desire to wash over him. "Going too far."

She lifted her head to kiss him lightly. "There's no such thing as too far, Sans. I love you, and I really want to be with you." She kissed him again.

His breath came out in a shudder. "I love you, too. I really do, and that's why I can't let this happen tonight. I'm sorry. Call me old school or whatever, but this is too fast."

He forced himself to pull back and sat on the edge of her bed. He hung his head down and took several breaths to calm down.

Frisk sat up beside him and kissed his shoulder. "Please don't apologize. This doesn't need to be rushed."

He sat up a little and pressed his teeth to her forehead. "Thank you."

She rested her head on him. "Of course."

He put his left arm around her and hugged her lightly. He took her hand with his right one and just held on.

They sat in comfortable silence for a few moments as Frisk watched his bony fingers delicately entwine with hers. She didn't want him to leave. She tilted her head slightly to look up at him.

"Will you stay with me tonight?" she asked softly.

He looked down into her eyes and thought for a moment. He knew she wasn't asking to continue what they'd been doing a few moments ago. He really didn't want to leave her. He pressed his mouth to hers.

"Yeah."

"You can borrow a pair of pants if you want. They should probably fit you."

He got up to call his brother and let him know he wouldn't be home that night. As he did, Frisk went through her drawers and found a long t-shirt and a pair of cotton pajama bottoms for him. He nodded silently and took them from her. She was intrigued by the light blue that brightened his cheekbones.

He didn't have anything to say to his brother's teasing, so instead of defending himself he just listened until Papyrus realized he wasn't getting a rise out of Sans. He took the phone with him to bathroom to change. By the time he'd returned, she'd changed as well and had taken her hair out of the bun.

"What was that about?" Frisk asked when Sans climbed into bed next to her. His cheekbones were still tinged blue.

Sans cleared his throat. "My brother being a bonehead."

She giggled as she snuggled up to him. "You're both kind of boneheads, you know." She lightly grazed her fingers over the back of his skull.

He smiled at her. "Yeah, but he's being the dumb kind." He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her gently.

"G'night, Sans." She nuzzled into his chest.

"Goodnight, Frisk."

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! I'd love to know your thoughts!


	11. Chapter 10

A/N: So I just got a new job and I'm not sure if I'll be able to keep posting on Wednesdays, but we'll see how things go. Enjoy!

* * *

CHAPTER TEN

"Hey, Mom?" Frisk asked hesitantly. She wasn't sure what outcome she was hoping for.

"What's wrong, honey?" Tori turned and set the teacup in front of her daughter before taking the seat next to her. "Is everything okay?"

Frisk nodded, but it took her a second longer to formulate the question that had been buzzing in her head since her date with Sans the week before.

"Yeah, but I wanted to ask you something. About monsters."

Tori nodded and took a sip of her tea. "What is it?"

Frisk took a deep breath. "Have you heard of a monster by the name of Gaster?"

Tori's face turned to stone. The room was chillingly silent for a few long seconds.

"Mom?" Frisk probed.

Tori seemed to recover. She set her teacup down and smiled tightly at her daughter. "I have."

A few more silent seconds. Frisk had expected her mother to continue.

"Do you know anything about him?" she finally asked.

Tori shook her head. "Not much."

Frisk pursed her lips. Her mother had never been so restrained when it came to talking about monsters. Usually, Frisk's questions were answered in the form of stories Tori had either heard or witnessed herself. To see her mother so quiet now confused and almost scared Frisk.

"Care to elaborate?" she asked cautiously.

Tori cleared her throat. "I don't know, honey. I mean, why do you even want to know?"

She shrugged. "I heard the name and was curious. You seem to know a lot about monsters, so I thought maybe you would know something about him."

"I know a lot about them because I've taken Monster History classes, and you know your great-grandmother was adopted by a monster couple. Hell, I was even named after the ancient queen of monsters." She shook her head. "I've heard stories about this Gaster fellow. They're not the kind of stories a mother would tell her children before bed."

Frisk could almost swear her mother shuddered. "Can you tell me anything? I mean, I'm really curious about him. What do you know?"

Tori sighed deeply. "Fine. From what I've read, and what I've learned in the Monster History classes I've taken, Doctor Gaster works in that lab by where Sans has his hotdog stand. It's a medical research facility owned and operated by Gaster. He's cruel and mean and…he experimented on his own children for hell's sake. A truly horrible monster."

Frisk could only stare at her, mouth agape for a moment. "Experimented?" she said doubtfully. "But why would he do that? He can't be that bad, right?"

Tori glanced at her. "I'm just telling you what I know, Frisk."

Frisk's eyes snapped to her mother's face. "I know, but I've heard other things…some people say he's not a bad guy." She shrugged like it wasn't a big deal.

Tori nodded slowly. "Tell me the real reason you asked about him."

Dammit, she was never a good liar. She looked down at the table for a second before taking a deep breath and meeting her mother's eyes again.

"He might kind of be my boyfriend's dad."

Tori gasped. "You mean Sans? Oh, Frisk, that's bad. I liked that skeleton, too. MK really looks up to him. Oh, dear." She stood up and walked to the stove to get the tea kettle.

"Why? What's wrong?"

Tori sucked in a deep breath. "Honey, if Sans truly is Gaster's son, you have to get away from him now."

Frisk stood up. "What? Why would you say that? Mom, I love Sans; I'm not going to break up with him just because his dad is a bit weird."

Tori set the kettle down and put her hands on Frisk's shoulders. "You don't understand, honey. I know you love him, but how well do you really know him?"

Frisk huffed and pulled back. "I've known him for two years, Mom. I think I can say I know him pretty well."

"Then why do you have to come to _me_ with questions about his own father?"

Frisk didn't have an answer for that. She looked down for a second before she decided she was done with the questions. She didn't want to hear any reasons why she and Sans weren't the perfect couple.

"Frisk, please. I'm begging you to listen to me. His children are said to _recruit_ for him."

Frisk shook her head. "I don't think I feel too great. I'm gonna head home. Love you, Mom."

"Frisk, wait." Tori reached out a hand and tried to grab Frisk's arm.

"No," Frisk turned around and gave her mom a sad smile. "I don't want to wait. I just want to go home."

Once home, she thought about what she'd learned from her mother. She wasn't sure she could just accept what the older woman had said as truth. Sans wouldn't tell her that his dad was a good guy if he wasn't.

And yet she couldn't escape the gnawing feeling like there was something bad that she needed to know about. She knew it was probably just curiosity eating at her gut rather than an actual foreboding, but it felt the same.

* * *

Two days later, Frisk still hadn't talked to her mom or Sans.

She hadn't talked to her mom because she knew her elder would be concerned, and quite possibly try to tell her to break up with Sans again. She didn't know what her mother had meant by Sans being his father's recruiter, but she knew it was something bad. She couldn't stomach that again.

She hadn't talked to Sans because she didn't know how she was going to carry on a normal conversation with him without begging for details about his dad again.

Curiosity and a strange form of nervousness built in her gut. Was Sans safe as Gaster's lab assistant if Gaster had experimented on his son? Would he try to do it again? Was that what Sans had meant by 'assistant'?

With a final sigh of determination, Frisk turned on her computer.

"G…A…S…T…E…R."

She hoped she spelled it right. She looked at the name in the search bar of her browser and thought about what she was about to do. She'd promised she wouldn't do this. But, he was right; she was curious.

Search results began showing up immediately. The first link was to a news article about a scientific breakthrough that Dr. W.D. Gaster had helped research. The second was to a blog hosted by the scientific community that Dr. Gaster had posted on.

She clicked on the second link only to find that Gaster's contribution had been to comment on a theory posted by a human doctor about how monster souls had once generated magic. The comment was a short, but very concise, criticism of the human's theory.

Curious, she read the human doctor's introduction to his theory.

 _After years of study and research, I have come to a possible hypothesis. I believe that ancient monsters were able to create magic through their own form of determination held in their souls. Different from human determination, monsters would use this to summon what they needed on the spot. It would have created quite the drain on the monster soul, and so after years of evolution the ability was lost to save energy. This may also be a part of the reason that they live so long. Not having that drain of energy has allowed them to focus more on longevity._

She supposed it wasn't a terrible idea. She read over Gaster's response again.

 _I wouldn't expect a human to know much about this subject, but please allow me to educate you. It is well known to those of us who have studied monster history our whole lives that magic was not created by the soul, but was a part of it. Those magical monsters no longer exist because humans destroyed them all. As hard a concept as this is to understand, I'm hopeful that your feeble mind can make an attempt._

She clicked on his username—Dr.W. —and looked over his profile. No picture, no background, no summary…no information about himself whatsoever. He had only posted a few responses to articles, but had never made a real post himself. Those responses he did make were similar to the first one she'd read.

She went back to her search results.

After a few more minutes of searching, she finally found something interesting. It was an article posted by a human she knew was anti-monster, but the title caught her attention: _Dr. Gaster and his Experiments_.

As she read the article, she began to understand why her mother wanted her to get away from Sans. This couldn't be real. Like Sans had said, she was bound to find a lot of results. People probably wanted to spread nasty rumors about him. Very few monsters had made a name for themselves, but those that did were often ridiculed and ostracized for 'trying to be human.'

She read through more articles about Gaster's experimentation, not all of them from anti-monster bloggers. She found a few from reputable sources and thought better of her previous opinions. These people were either monsters themselves or known monster activists; they couldn't have racist reasonings behind slandering the scientist.

Did that mean that Gaster was truly experimenting on humans?

* * *

A/N: No, Gaster wouldn't do that…would he? What is he doing? Obvs something super-secret and awesome, right? Maybe. Or maybe he's just a recluse who wants nothing to do with humans and his son wants to respect that?

Thanks for reading! Reviews are lovely.

I'm on Twitter at SheeWolf85


	12. Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"Is everything okay?" Sans asked, a concerned gleam in his eye sockets.

Frisk nodded, but she knew the look on her face gave her away. She looked at him for a few moments before she took a deep breath and shook her head.

"No. I did something bad."

She had thought about the results she'd found from her search quite a lot in the past twenty-four hours. In addition to being wracked with guilt over doing what she'd already promised she wouldn't, she couldn't help but ruminate over his words. _'Just trust me that he's a good guy.'_

Sans took her hand and held it between both of his bony ones. "What was it?" He had to wonder if what she'd done was actually bad or if she was just nervous about something silly again.

She took a deep breath and looked up to meet the lights in his sockets. "I did exactly what you asked me not to do."

He raised a brow bone. "I'm confused." He tried to think of things he'd asked her not to do. The only thing that came to mind was searching—

He pulled his hand back. Without bothering to ask for clarification, his eye burned brightly as he began to judge her soul.

She gasped as his magic shoved into her chest.

Her guilt invaded his mind. Images of her thoughts—his father experimenting on him and humans—made his head spin.

Frisk shivered as she felt the weight of what she'd done crawling up her spine.

He had known exactly what she would find. It apparently didn't matter that he'd already told her none of it was true. She was guilty as charged.

He stood up and started toward the door.

"Sans, wait. Please?" Frisk knew he would be mad at her, but she had hoped he'd let her explain and possibly give her the real information.

"Why should I?" he turned back to her, his eye still blazing. "You obviously don't care about promises you make to me. If this was your sick way of getting the real story out of me, you're dead wrong."

Frisk's stomach dropped. "That's not…Sans, I'm sorry."

He huffed. "Be honest with me, Frisk. If I forgive you right now and we go back to being a 'happy couple', will you be able to forget about what you read? The answer is no, so don't try to tell me otherwise. You're so damn curious it's infuriating; you're not going to stop wondering if what you read was real." He backed up a step when she tried to move closer. "I'll tell you right now it wasn't real, but that's all you're getting."

Without another word, he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

Frisk buried her face in her hands and tried not to cry.

~LM~

Gaster looked up from the papers on his desk when he heard a noise in the other office. He hadn't expected Sans to come in today. His brow bones furrowed, and he got up cautiously to check it out. Before he'd made it five steps, he heard Sans yell out and something crashed the floor. Shocked, he hurried into the other room.

Sans stood in the middle of the room breathing heavily, his eye and hand engulfed in blue flame. A bookshelf in the corner was on its side, books scattered on the floor.

"Sans?"

Sans turned around and nearly threw an attack. He managed to stop himself when he realized it was just his dad. He was so angry at himself for giving her the suggestion in the first place, but how could she break a promise she'd made right to his face? He already knew the damage had been done. It wouldn't matter what the truth was; what she'd read would forever haunt her, and he knew she'd always doubt his dad's motives around her.

"What happened?" Gaster asked. He rushed forward and pulled his son close. "Are you okay?"

He'd lost her. He knew she'd search again, and she might even find rumors about him. Would she believe them? She probably would. Despite the years she'd known him, she would probably believe human reports over her own evidence.

Without a word, Sans wrapped his arms around his dad and held on tight.

Gaster had never seen his son so upset before. On the few occasions that he did get upset, he was always quick to talk to Gaster, ask for help, or even just sit calmly in the room, stating that his dad's presence helped clear his mind. But this time…it had to be that human. He had tried to warn Sans that she was nothing but trouble. Humans didn't care about monsters; they just wanted to find the best ways to hurt his kind.

"It will be okay, Son," Gaster said softly, "you'll see."

Sans shook his head. "I can't believe I trusted her!"

So Gaster had been right. He began to lead Sans out of the office and into the lounge area, away from anything important he could damage.

Sans was too agitated to sit but too overwhelmed to pace. He just stood there, clinging to his father's white lab coat as if the feel of it between his bony fingers would make everything okay.

That was how it had been when Sans was younger. When bad things happened, he turned to his dad. The lab coat was as familiar as his cologne, his hug, his gentle but rational insights on how to solve problems.

Sans pulled back and wiped blue tears from his face. "Please don't say you told me so."

Gaster smiled, only one side of his mouth able to move. "Not like this. You already know. Besides, I can tell you truly loved her."

"Love, Dad. Not past-tense. I still love her." But why? She had broken his trust; shouldn't he have let that emotion go?

Gaster nodded. "That's not going to fade quickly, Son." Seeing his son so upset hurt him inside. It was something he wasn't entirely used to. He had been told he was far too logical to be a good father, but he had tried his best with his sons. He had also been told he had no capacity for emotion, but that was wrong. He loved both of his sons dearly, even if he had an odd way of showing it sometimes. All that aside, he wanted to help his oldest son. He tried to think of what Sans' mother might have said.

"I kind of want to hate her," Sans confessed. The words hurt his soul.

Gaster shook his head. "No, you don't." He took Sans' hand and led him to the couch where they sat. "You want that now because you're angry. You won't stay angry forever, and when it fades you're going to have to figure out how to move forward."

Sans gave his dad a confused look. "You mean with her?"

Gaster shrugged. "With or without her, that part doesn't matter. You can't deny that, one way or another, something needs to happen. Either you make up and work on fixing your relationship with her, or you break up with her."

Sans thought about that for a second. A part of his soul wanted to be able to make up and be a couple again. Another part of him, however, wanted to be angry forever. Something occurred to him then. He looked up into Gaster's cracked face.

"Why aren't you telling me all the reasons I should break up with her?"

Gaster smiled again. "Because it's not my place. I was very upset at first, yes. I thought with everything I've been through, you would know better than to trust humans. However, only you can make your decisions. I can only support you, even if I disagree with you."

Sans nodded. It seemed he had some things to think about. "If it was someone you really loved—like mom—would you forgive her?"

Gaster wasn't sure what to say to that for a minute. He thought back to his marriage, even before Sans was born. She had been the best thing that had ever happened to him. She met his logical reasoning with a kind of down-to-earth humor that made him truly happy for the first time he could remember. After Sans was born, she fell ill. He had done everything he could think of to try to save her, but by Sans' fourth birthday she was too far gone to even remember they had a child. She had passed less than a year later. It was her illness that had gotten him into medicine, and he was close to finding a cure for the tumors that had ravaged her fragile body.

"Yes, I would," Gaster said softly.

Sans nodded again, slowly. He stared at his phalanges for a long moment.

Gaster sat with his son for a while longer until he decided it was time to get back to work. He stood up.

"I'm having a difficult time with some of these test results. Would you mind helping me to decipher them?"

Sans looked up and smiled. "Sure, Dad."

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much for reading! I'd love to know your thoughts!


	13. Chapter 12

A/N: I forgot to update this on Wednesday! I'm sorry, guys. For my mistake, you get two updates today! I'll be posting chapter 13 soon after this. Enjoy!

* * *

CHAPTER TWELVE

It had been four days. Frisk had tried to call and text Sans with no response. She'd talked to her mom, who only said it was probably for the best. She decided not to listen to her mother and instead focus on hoping that Sans would reach out to her soon.

She had done everything she could to forget what she'd read online about Gaster. Some of it was impossible, but she did manage to convince herself that some of the more outrageous things were false. She made herself believe that Sans wouldn't stick up for someone who hurt him, and that meant that Gaster hadn't hurt him. It made her feel a little better.

On the fifth day with no response, she reached out to Papyrus. Her leg bounced nervously in the break room at work as the phone rang.

"Hello?" the familiar voice all but shouted in her ear.

"Hey Papyrus! How are you?"

The line was silent for a second.

"Oh. Hello, Human." He sounded cautious.

Frisk felt tears start to gather in her eyes. Had Sans turned his brother against her?

"Hey, have you heard from Sans?" She almost wanted to smack her forehead; of course he'd heard from his brother—they lived together.

"I've been told I cannot talk to you for the time being. I'm sorry, Frisk."

The line went dead. She screamed internally as she all but slammed her phone down on the table. She just wanted a chance to apologize for real. She'd made one stupid mistake; couldn't he give her one more chance? It wasn't like she'd openly accused his dad of horrible things. He couldn't really be willing to give up two and a half years of friendship over _that_ —could he?

Her brain decided to turn the tables on her. How would she feel if he'd broken a promise to her? One she was really serious about? She'd be pretty damn upset, that was for sure. But she had to believe she'd give him a chance to explain himself.

With that, she took a deep breath and picked up her phone. Before she could even unlock it, her text alert chimed. It was Sans.

Excitement and fear swirled together in her gut as she opened the message.

 _Leave Papyrus out of this. Do you work tomorrow?_

She breathed a sigh of relief.

 _No, I don't._

 _I'll come over sometime and we can talk._

She nodded to herself with a little smile.

 _Okay. Thank you._

There was no response after that. Oh, well. At least she'd gotten something.

She looked at the clock and realized her break was over. Time to get back to work.

~LM~

Frisk set the pan on the stove and nervously checked the time. Even though Sans hadn't said a specific time, she really hoped he'd be there in time for lunch. She set the table as she waited.

Twenty minutes passed. She sat at the table and stared into her casserole mindlessly.

Another fifteen minutes later, she finally dished her plate and began eating. Once finished, she cleaned up and went to sit on the couch. She really hoped he actually showed. She leaned forward and grabbed the remote to turn on the television. She watched thoughtlessly for what felt like hours before there was finally a knock on the door.

She sighed in relief and got up to let Sans in. He came in and stood next to her as she shut the door. She wasn't surprised to see him in his blue hoodie and black shorts.

"Hi Sans. Thank you for coming."

He nodded and looked around. He really needed more time to think about what he wanted to do, but her contacting Papyrus proved to him that he needed to give her something. Paps was already upset enough about the situation; he couldn't stand the thought of losing his only human friend. He wanted Sans to make up with her so they could stay friends, but he understood why he couldn't push his brother to do so.

"Yeah. I don't really know what to tell you, Frisk."

She smiled sadly and reached out to take his hand. He pulled back from her and looked down at his feet.

"Sans, if you're going to break up with me, please just do it. Don't leave me hanging like this." That wasn't at all what she wanted to say. She cleared her throat. "I love you—I really, really do—and I'm so sorry for what I did. I want another chance to prove myself to you."

"How would you prove yourself to me? It's not like I've asked you to promise me much. Just one damn thing, Frisk. One fucking thing and you couldn't keep your nose out of it." He was disgusted with her again, but still a part of his soul wanted to hold her close and never let go. He had missed her more than he let himself believe.

Frisk lowered her head in shame. "I know. It was really stupid and selfish of me, and I regret ever even thinking of it. I had tried to ask my mom about him first, but she wouldn't really talk much. The conversation just made me want to know even more."

Sans stopped and looked at her for a long moment. "You talked to your mom about my dad?" he asked incredulously. "Why the fuck would you do that?"

"No, that was before I looked him up. I asked her because she knows a lot about monsters. She's taken Monster History classes before."

He shook his head; he couldn't really believe what he was hearing. "So you thought a human who had taken a few classes would tell you what you wanted to know. What makes you think that the classes available to humans even have the right information?"

She wasn't sure what to say to that for a few minutes. She took a deep breath. "She's always told me about monsters. Even when I was a kid, she'd read to me about the ancient king and queen, Toriel and Asgore. I just want to know as much about you as I can, Sans. I love you so much, and it kind of hurts to know that you want to keep a part of you hidden away from me."

He snorted. "Yeah, you love me enough to break the only promise I've ever asked you to make."

"Come on, Sans. Please don't be like that. I'm sorry, okay? Tell me what I need to do to make it up to you." She held her hands out, pleading with him.

He looked her over for a moment, thinking about what she'd said. He wasn't ready to forgive her just yet, but maybe there was something else she could offer him.

"You said in one of your voicemails that you had all but forgotten what you'd read, right?"

Frisk nodded. "You said he was a good guy, so I'm choosing to believe that instead."

He took that into consideration for a second. "Then I want you to meet him."

Her eyes widened. "What?"

He smiled. "Yeah. Show me that you're really over whatever those fucks wrote about him, and maybe I'll forgive you."

 _Oh gods_ , she thought to herself, _this could be bad_. "O-okay." She tried to remind herself that she trusted Sans; he wouldn't put her in danger. Even so, she could feel the words 'human experimentation' crawling on her skin.

"If you're that scared, you don't have to." Sans had really wanted to believe that she could trust him, but the look on her face proved otherwise.

Frisk shook herself and met his eyes. "No, I want to. It's been hard to forget what I read, but I want to show you that I'm serious about this."

With a nod, Sans pulled her close and snapped his fingers.

~LM~

Gaster sighed when he felt the familiar rush of energy that was Sans' teleportation. Once again, he hadn't expected his son in the lab today. As much as he wanted to comfort the young skeleton, he had important work to do.

"Hey Dad," Sans called from the lounge. "Come here for a sec."

Gaster looked up, staring blankly at the wall. There was another presence in the room, one he wouldn't soon forget. Anger began to build in his chest, but he pushed it down far enough to at least find out what in the blazes his son thought he was doing.

He got up and walked into the lounge. Sure enough, a small human girl—woman, really, but sometimes it was hard to tell ages—stood halfway behind Sans. Gaster sighed.

"What are you doing, Sans?" he asked.

Sans pulled on Frisk's hand pushed her in front of him. "This is Frisk, my girlfriend. I thought it was about time you two met."

Frisk could only stare for a few long seconds. The skeleton in front of her was taller than even Papyrus, dressed in a pair of dark slacks and a cream, high-necked sweater covered by a white lab coat. His hands were behind his back, and he stood tall and looked down on her with what she could only assume was disgust in his features.

His face frightened her. Whatever she had been expecting, it wasn't this. His left eye had a crack that went down to his mouth, slightly distorting his features. His right eyelid was half closed and cracked up into his skull. His mouth was pulled up into a grin on the left side, but the right was curved downward in a scowl. This was the face of a person she could imagine experimenting on innocent people.

"It isn't a pleasure," Gaster sneered.

Frisk shivered at his voice. It was low, threatening. She could almost feel the cold hatred he felt toward her dripping in every syllable. She swallowed thickly.

"Come on, Dad," Sans complained. "Can you be nice for five minutes?"

Gaster closed his good eye and sighed. "Fine. Hello, Frisk." He held out his right hand.

Frisk nearly gasped at the sight of the large hole in the middle of his palm. Sans didn't have one of those…was it normal? She couldn't force herself to reach out and take his hand. What if she hurt him?

Gaster scoffed. "I have work to do." He turned on his heel and walked away.

As he walked away, Frisk remembered something that Sans had told her. Gaster had suffered through a lot. It suddenly hit her that he was the one who'd had the accident. Sans' father was the one he'd inherited only one glowing eye from. She also realized it wasn't an accident that had caused all of his scars; it was humans.

"Nice job, Frisk," Sans all but growled in her ear. "I can tell you're so over it."

"Wait, Sans," she turned to him and hugged him tightly. "I'm so sorry for what happened to him." She really wanted to say the words to Gaster, but she was too afraid of facing his hatred again.

Sans was a little surprised. That wasn't what he'd expected to hear from her. "What?"

She shook her head against his chest. "I don't understand how someone could do that to a monster. Gods, it must have hurt so badly." Just the idea of someone suffering through so much pain made her heart hurt.

"I don't get it, Frisk. What do you mean?"

She moved back just enough to look up at him. "I mean, you were talking about your father when you mentioned your parent that had the accident. He's gone through so much at the hands of humans." She stepped back and turned to look into the lab where Gaster was sitting at a desk in the middle of the room. She took a deep breath and turned back to Sans. "Can I go in there?"

Sans raised a brow bone. "As long as he doesn't have a beaker in his hand, you should be okay for a minute."

She nodded and walked toward the elder monster. Sans followed her closely.

"Doctor Gaster?" she said timidly.

Gaster sighed and looked up. "What do you want, Human?" he nearly growled the last word.

"I want to apologize; my behavior a moment ago was atrocious. It really is a pleasure to finally meet you." She held out her hand.

Gaster looked at her hand in disgust for a second before standing up. He gently curled his fingers around hers for a brief handshake. He tried not to wipe his hand on his lab coat when he pulled it back.

"While I can't say the same for you, I appreciate your apology."

She nodded. "I understand completely. I would say I'm sorry for what happened, but we both know that won't change anything."

He narrowed his eye at her. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Had she said something wrong? She tried to think quickly to clarify. "I mean…I just thought…"

"She means she's sorry for what humans did to you," Sans supplied.

Gaster frowned. "Why?"

She thought about her words for a second before speaking. "Knowing that my kind hurt a monster so badly…it makes me feel ashamed to say I'm associated with them." She shrugged and looked down at her feet.

That was not what Gaster had expected to hear. He pondered her words for a moment. "That's ridiculous. You clearly weren't involved, so there's no reason to feel remorse."

She looked up and smiled ruefully. "Maybe not, but I can't help it. You're Sans' dad, and that makes it worse. He cares about you, which means I care about you."

Gaster stepped back. "I have to get back to work." He turned, nearly bumping against his desk in the process, and went to the counter in the corner of the room.

Sans smirked and took Frisk's hand. "Come on; let's let him be."

She nodded and stepped up to him. He wrapped an arm around her and snapped his fingers, and suddenly they were back in her living room.

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much for reading! I'd love to know your thoughts.


	14. Chapter 13

A/N: Warning! Things get a bit FRISKY in this chapter. Nothing super graphic yet, but y'know...making up can be sexy. Enjoy!

* * *

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Frisk sat down on the couch and quietly thought about what she'd learned that night. The couch depressed slightly beside her. She leaned into Sans and felt a little better when he pulled her in close.

"I'm really sorry, Sans," she finally whispered. "I'm sorry I was such an idiot." She turned into him a little more and buried her face in the fabric of his jacket. "I love you."

Sans took a deep breath and kissed her head. "I love you, too."

"Can you forgive me?" She peeked up at him, nervous about what his answer might be.

"What changed your mind?" he asked. "You were afraid, and then all of a sudden you weren't. What happened?"

Frisk sat up and ran a hand through her hair. "The thought of him going through all of that pain…You're so good, Sans. I mean, you're funny and smart and a ray of sunlight in the lives of everyone lucky enough to know you. Your brother's so kind and helpful, too. Neither of you would be that way if your dad…if he did the things I read about. I can't imagine you two being who you are if your dad went on a revenge kick, either." She shook her head. "I guess the hard evidence I had finally clicked into place and overrode all that nasty shit."

Sans smiled and took her hand. "That's what I was hoping to hear. You know me, Frisk. There's a reason I kept you two separated. Maybe I should have introduced you earlier, but I can't go back. I'm not ashamed of my reasons, though." He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. "But you proved to me tonight that you are over it. I've never seen him so flustered before, either. That was pretty funny."

"What did I say that made him do that?"

"That you care about him. He can accept that Papyrus and I love him because we're his family. In his mind, it's just not logical for anyone else to have a reason to care about him. It doesn't bother him; it's just how it is for him."

"That's sad." Frisk tightened her fingers around Sans'. "Your other friends care about him, don't they?"

Sans nodded. "Yeah, but Dad doesn't see it that way. They're monsters and they're my friends, so they're okay. You're human; according to him, humans aren't capable of caring for monsters. First, he has this scary-logical mind. Almost everything is black and white to him. Second, the only humans he's spent any real length of time with since…y'know…are other scientists who also have this logical mind. They want to understand everything about the world around them, which I get, but then they act like he's an idiot when he's had his degrees decades longer than some of them have even been alive. It's frustrating."

"Were you worried that I would doubt his ability to be a real scientist?" she asked, looking up to meet the lights in his eye sockets.

He shook his head. "No. I was actually more afraid that he'd say something to you to make you run away from me. He has zero tact a lot of the time and he can be very offensive when he wants to be. He doesn't want to hurt my feelings, though, so he was nice to you today."

"I'm never running away." She snuggled up to him again. "You can't get rid of me."

Sans' arm tightened around her, and he kissed the side of her head. "I'm glad to hear it."

She looked up at him again. "Hey Sans? Did you ever hear about that dyslexic Satanist who sold his soul to Santa?"

Sans snorted.

"Knock, knock," she said.

"Who's there?" He looked down at her.

"Little old lady."

"'Little old lady', who?"

She grinned and kissed his teeth. "I didn't know you could yodel!"

He chuckled and kissed her back. "How'd the hipster burn his tongue?"

She tried to scoot a little closer. "No idea." She wouldn't mind seeing his tongue again. The thought was a little thrilling.

"He drank his coffee before it was cool."

She giggled. "Kiss me."

"I don't think I've heard that one."

She hummed. "Well come here; I'll tell you all about it."

He smirked. "Ooh, that was smooth." He finally closed the distance between them.

Frisk could hardly believe how good it felt just to kiss him. Her body nearly hurt with the desire to feel how good it could be to be with him in other ways. She pulled him as close as she could possibly get, eager to connect every surface of her body with him.

She squeaked in surprise when he suddenly pushed her away. She was confused for all of two seconds before he pushed her down on the couch and positioned himself over her.

"Is this okay?" he asked.

She could only nod, breathless. Instead of speaking, she gripped his hoodie and pulled him down to her lips. She whimpered with need as she felt his hands begin to explore her body. Her mouth opened, and she licked him, hardly able to even care if she was moving too fast again. She just needed him everywhere.

Sans was past logical thought when he felt her tongue against his teeth. He concentrated his magic, creating a tongue to kiss her the way he knew she needed to be kissed. The sound she made when their tongues met sent shivers over every bone in his body and spurred his hands to further their exploration. He couldn't stop himself from groaning at the feel of her tongue, warm and wet, against his magic.

Frisk had thought it would be weird to kiss a magical tongue, but it was bliss. There was a slight tingle to every movement he made as he expertly kissed her back like he'd done it his whole life. She wasn't sure if she should be surprised that he tasted like sweet oranges and cinnamon; it went well with his scent.

She reached down and slipped her fingers under his hoodie and felt the tops of his hip bones. She pulled back when she felt his bones stiffen. "Is this okay?" she asked, mimicking his words.

He smirked. "Hell yes."

"I really like the tongue, by the way."

He stuck it out for her, and she giggled.

"I love you," she said softly, dragging her fingertips down the front of his hoodie.

Sans kissed her gently. "I love you, too." He slipped a hand up her side to her breast. "Tell me if I go too far."

She put a hand over his bony one. "I told you before: there's no such thing as too far."

He closed his eyes and squeezed her breast. "Gods, you're so _soft_."

"Kiss me, dammit."

He complied, thrusting his tongue into her mouth. Hands continued to explore and soon she had unzipped his hoodie. He shrugged out of it without breaking their kiss. It landed somewhere in the black abyss that was off the couch.

Before either of them could realize what was going on, he'd lost the shirt he was wearing, and he was pulling hers up. she didn't let him stop to ask if everything was still okay. Instead, she sat up just enough to help him and threw her shirt in the same direction his had gone. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close again, relishing in the feel of his rib cage against her skin.

He shivered when her fingers danced down his spine. He was quickly losing himself, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. As long as she didn't say anything, he told himself it was okay. He kissed his way down her throat.

Frisk had never noticed the spikes on each of his vertebra before. They weren't sharp, and the feel of them turned her on even more. She tilted her head up as he began exploring her neck. She cried out when he bit her; it hurt more than she had thought it should.

"Are you okay?" Sans asked.

She nodded and looked down at him. "I think so. Be gentler?"

He blushed and kissed her where he'd just bitten her. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize, just don't draw blood either."

He smirked. "I'll do my best."

He lowered his head back to her shoulder and bit her again, softer this time. He was rewarded with a mewl of pleasure that went straight through him. He licked her skin and bit her again one more time before he lifted her just enough to unclasp her bra.

He had to take a moment to appreciate her body. He pushed himself back just enough to admire her. He smiled as her dark nipples hardened under his gaze.

"What is it?" Frisk asked, starting to feel a little self-conscious.

Sans met her eyes and leaned down to kiss her. "You're just so beautiful. I've thought about this moment for a long time." He kissed her again. "It's better than I imagined it would be."

She reached up and touched his light blue cheekbones. "Touch me." She whispered the words as she tried to urge him back down to kiss her.

He complied.

In what felt like no time at all, Frisk was all but naked under him. He didn't bother to stop as he slid her panties down over her hips. She lifted them and helped him, tossing them off the couch. She put her feet on his hip bones and smiled up at him.

"Make love to me." That made her think of something. "I'm assuming if you can make a tongue you can also make a dick?"

She watched in awe as his tongue dissolved into a ball of blue light. It traveled down the inside of his ribs, past his spine, and into his shorts. She smiled when they expanded, pitching a nice sized tent. She used her feet to push his pants down, excited when the blue penis was finally exposed. She looked up and met his nearly flaming eye.

"Please, Sans? I really need you." She pulled him down to kiss him again and thrust her chest up to meet his hands.

Sans' head was spinning. He wanted her madly, but this was still too fast. All it would take is one thrust and he'd be inside her. There was no chance of pregnancy, even if she wasn't on birth control. There was only pleasure to be had by both of them, both eager. So why was he so hesitant?

He kissed her once more and pulled back. "Frisk…" he didn't know how to tell her that he needed to stop. He could see the need in her eyes; he almost felt like he was betraying her.

Frisk wanted to plead with him again, but the look on his face caused her stomach to turn at the thought of doing so. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I don't know…" he couldn't look at her. He stood up long enough to pull his pants back up, all traces of magic gone. He sat back down and put his face in his hands.

"Did I do something wrong?" She asked. She sat up next to him and kissed his shoulder.

He shook his head, not moving his hands. "No."

Somehow, she doubted that. She put her arm around him and rested her head on his shoulder. "Please talk to me."

It took him a moment to gather his thoughts. He appreciated her patience as she waited for him. After a few minutes, he sat up, pushing her back a little, and pulled her close. He kissed her gently.

"I'm sorry, Frisk. I can't do this tonight. It's not you, it's…I don't even know what it is." He shook his head again. "I love you, and I want you, but when I think about making that move, I feel like it's all too much too soon."

She smiled and put her hand on his jaw, asking him silently to look at her. He met her eyes.

"I love you, Sans. This doesn't need to happen until we're both ready. Thank you for talking to me."

He breathed a sigh of relief and kissed her. "Thank you."

She kissed him back, still so turned on she almost wanted to crawl on top of him. She managed to tear herself away.

"Sans?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think…I don't want to push you into anything at all, but do you think you might be able to help me? With this?" She gestured down between her legs. "I'm so fucking horny."

He smiled and nodded. "I think I can manage that." At least, he hoped he could.

He kissed her and leaned her back on the couch before he realized he didn't know what to do. He hesitated for a second before pulling back again.

"Will you show me what to do?" he asked, a little embarrassed that he didn't already know.

She didn't let him dwell on it. She took his hand, kissed his knuckles, and then slowly directed his fingers to where she needed them.

~LM~

"Did you make up with her?" Papyrus asked hopefully. He smiled and waited for his brother's response.

Sans smiled back. "Sure did, bro."

"Yippee! When can she come over for dinner again? I want to celebrate!" He rushed into the kitchen. "I can make my famous pasta brownies."

Sans shuddered. "Please don't do that. It was just a fight."

Papyrus turned around to face his brother. "Just a fight? No, it was your first fight as a couple. These milestones should be honored!"

Sans all but slapped his forehead with a bony hand. "No, Paps. Let's not do that please? We'll invite her for dinner soon, but we don't need to be celebrating anything."

Papyrus huffed. "Fine. The Great Papyrus will have to think of another way to show the human that I'm happy she's still going to be a part of my life."

Sans was finally able to escape to his room. He took his jacket off and threw it somewhere in the vicinity of the coat rack. It hit the floor a few feet short. Oh, well. He dropped onto his bed and groaned. It had been a long day. All in all, he was pretty happy with how it had turned out.

If he was being honest with himself, he was surprised that he had been able to forgive Frisk so easily. He had been so angry with her, but that all just seemed to melt when she was so obviously concerned about the pain his dad had gone through. His monster friends had thought about that, but none of them had ever apologized. He had never expected nor even wanted them to.

He supposed it made sense. She was human, and so she felt bad for what had been done by human hands. Even as merciful as he knew she was, it still amazed him.

He decided not to dwell on that. Instead, his mind turned to what had happened that night. Frisk's body underneath him was an image he was not going to forget. She was so beautiful, and she was his. He wondered again why he wasn't able to make love to her. He wanted her, and she clearly wanted him.

He turned when his phone chimed. He picked it up off the nightstand and unlocked it. A message from Frisk.

 _I have bruises. Your teeth bruised me. You don't know how much I wish these would never fade. It's our version of a hickey!_

He was confused. He wanted to feel bad and apologize, but something in the way she'd written the message told him she was happy about it.

 _What's a hickey?_

He decided to look it up. The description he found almost made him wish he had lips so he could give her a real one.

 _It's a love bruise. You gave me love bruises._

He smiled; it seemed what he was able to give her was real enough.

 _In that case, you're welcome._

He almost put his phone back when it buzzed again. Another message, this one a picture of dark welts on Frisk's body. He really wanted to feel bad about those. At the same time, he recalled each and every one he'd given her. The memory of her under him, so ready and willing to take every damn step there was to be taken with him, made him wish he could go back and not stop.

 _You're making me horny. Knock it off._

Another picture, this one of the bruise on her inner thigh.

 _Good, because I'm horny again. You can suffer with me. I'll send you better pics if you send me some. We can jack off together._

He groaned. What was she doing to him? He began to build his magic, allowing his lust to manifest itself into something he could hold.

"Sans!"

Oh shit.

Every ounce of magic dissipated faster than he would have thought possible as Papyrus knocked on the door.

"Yeah, bro?"

"I'm going to bed. Will you come read to me?"

He couldn't deny that skeleton anything.

"Yeah, give me a second. I'll be there."

 _Sorry, babe. Paps calls. We'll do this another time. Love you._

He stood and pulled up his pants before going to read to his brother.

* * *

A/N: Please don't be too frustrated with Sans; he doesn't understand what's going on because he's never been in this situation with a human before, but he's concerned about hurting her. They'll figure it out, I promise.


	15. Chapter 14

A/N: I almost forgot again! Good lord, y'all need to hit me with something. Please enjoy this short little chapter.

* * *

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Grillby watched Gaster down the second glass of the evening. Something was bothering him. The fire monster could tell his friend wasn't upset about work; that usually led to several shots downed in a matter of minutes. Full glasses of whiskey were usually reserved for the serious stuff.

"So, what's up?" Grillby asked, leaning down on one elbow on the counter.

Gaster looked up and sighed. "I don't know what to do."

Grillby nodded. "That's a first. Gotta be frustrating for someone like you." Grillby always thought Gaster was the smartest monster there was. There had been many a time that Grillby sought out Gaster's advice on things when it was usually the other way around with most of his customers.

Gaster nodded. "I don't like it. This is…this situation is different. I know what I want to do, but it would hurt Sans, so I can't." That human brat had Sans convinced that she actually cared about him.

Grillby was intrigued. He probably should have figured it had something to do with family. It seemed as if Gaster was only ever flustered when one or both of his sons did something stupid.

"Anything I can help with?"

Gaster thought about that for a second. "I don't know. Sans has this…girlfriend." He shuddered at the word.

The elemental smiled. "Yeah, I've met her. Nice girl."

Gaster glared. "She's a human."

"Yeah, but just looking at the two it's obvious how much she loves him."

"Dear gods, not you, too."

Ah, so that's what this was about, Grillby thought. He knew his friend's thoughts about humans. Although he didn't share them, he could understand where Gaster was coming from. Even if Gaster wouldn't admit it, he knew that the physical scars were nothing compared to the mental and emotional ones.

"Have you met her?"

"Yes," he grumbled. "I met her a few hours ago. Sans just showed up with her. He didn't even bother to warn me first."

"I bet he had his reasons." Grillby reached out and put a flaming hand on his friend's arm.

Gaster looked up into the fire monster's face. "I was scared, Grillby." He looked down, ashamed to have admitted that. The alcohol must already be taking effect.

"That's not an absurd reaction, Gaster. When was the last time you were actually in the same room as humans?"

Gaster didn't want to remember the graduation ceremony for his third doctorate. He pushed the memories away. "That's beside the point. She's a tiny human girl, and I was afraid of her." He scoffed at himself.

The elemental wished he had something to say to his friend to make him feel better. Instead, he refilled the scientist's whiskey and went to help another customer at the bar.

As the evening went on, Grillby watched his friend get drunker. He was a little worried as closing time came around. He had one of his servers give his friend a glass of water—he was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to tell the difference now anyway—and went to lock the doors and turn off the signs.

"Come on," he finally said. "You're not driving. I got a couch you can crash on."

Gaster looked up at his friend, his thoughts swirling. Amid the murky images in his mind, the idea that Grillby being made of fire meant he was pretty hot formed. The thought made him giggle.

Grillby wasn't sure what that look was all about, but he found himself burning a little hotter with embarrassment. He had never heard that sound come out of his friend, either. It was like a laugh, but high pitched. He crackled to clear his throat and walked around the bar to help his friend.

"I got ya," he said as Gaster stumbled.

Gaster tried to push Grillby off of him. He could handle himself. After he tripped for the third time, he decided that he could probably use the help.

They went out the back exit, through the kitchen, and up the stairs to Grillby's apartment.

~LM~

Gaster groaned and put his hands on his head. If he didn't know any better, he'd say his head was splitting apart. His fingertips found the cracks in his skull.

For a brief second, he found himself strapped to a lab table inside of a machine he didn't understand. The mechanism looked like a large ice pick. The only thing he knew for sure was that his head was actually being split open.

He sat up too fast and screamed. Dear gods, not again! NO!

Once the room stopped spinning, he realized he probably wasn't in the laboratory anymore. It wasn't logical for him to be there; he had too many new memories. He had grown children now.

"Gaster?!" Grillby asked in alarm as he sat down next to his friend. "What happened?"

Gaster closed his eyes and held his head in his hands again. "A damn memory, that's all." The pain in his head hadn't diminished, which didn't help him put the memory back where it belonged. The edges of his consciousness still believed he was in a human lab.

Grillby had seen his friend through too many flashbacks to not know what was going on. Gaster handled his better than the elemental handled his own. He got up and grabbed some pain killers off the counter. He probably shouldn't have let Gaster drink that much the night before.

He sat with his friend on the couch for a while, keeping a hand on his arm or his back—somewhere to help remind the skeleton where he was—until he started to calm down.

As the pain started to fade, he finally realized he was in Grillby's living room.

"What am I doing here?" Gaster asked.

Grillby shrugged. "You were drunk off your ass last night. I had to make sure you were going to be safe. You know my couch is always open for you." He patted Gaster's shoulder.

Gaster attempted a smile. He leaned back and groaned. "Did I wake you up? What time is it anyway?"

"It's…" Grillby looked up to see the clock. "About four-thirty. You did wake me up, but don't worry about it. I'd rather be in here helping you past a flashback than let you go through it alone. You know I understand how hard those are."

Gaster knew. The last war with humans had been a nightmare of agony for his friend. He'd lost most of his family that year. It was only another reason he hated humans so much: they only seemed capable of putting those he cared about through hell.

Gaster nodded and smiled at Grillby. "Thanks."

"Anytime, old friend."

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! I'd love to know what you thought.


	16. Chapter 15

A/N: Who's ready for this story to pick up? I am!

PTSD TRIGGER WARNING! A reader left a review stating that they were triggered by this chapter, so please read carefully!

* * *

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

"Should I ask you what you think of her?" Sans asked as he shrugged on his lab coat.

Gaster glanced down at his son. He'd gotten over his anger, but he still couldn't figure out how Sans could think what he'd done was a good idea.

"No."

Sans' smile dropped. "Really, Dad? She's a fucking rainbow incarnate; you can't hate her."

"I don't hate her." Although he wasn't sure why.

Sans watched his dad for a minute. Sometimes his logic-minded self could hide emotions a little too well. He wanted to know what his dad thought of his girlfriend now that he'd forced them to meet. He wasn't sure why; it wasn't like Gaster was going to change his mind about how he regarded humans because of one woman.

Gaster sighed and turned to his son before they started on the tests for the day. "I'm serious, Son. I don't hate her. I'm still a little frustrated with you, however."

That was a surprise. "With me?"

"Yes, with you. It would have been nice if I'd been able to prepare for that meeting."

Sans realized that, in his rage, he'd completely forgotten to take his dad's feelings into consideration. If he had taken even a second to think about how it would have affected him, he would have realized that his dad was still afraid of humans.

"I'm sorry." He hung his head in shame. "I didn't even think about that."

Gaster placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "I know, and I don't blame you. You know emotions aren't my strong suit, and I tend to make irrational choices myself when I'm caught off-guard by them. I said I was still frustrated, not angry. I'll get over it."

Sans stepped forward and hugged Gaster tightly. "I know you will, but I want you to know that from now on I will talk to you before I bring her…well, I won't be bringing her here again, but I guess I don't want that to be the only time you ever get to know her. She really is an amazing person."

Gaster hugged Sans back. "I wouldn't be opposed to that."

Sans stepped back and looked up. "Really?"

"I suppose I love you, my son. I want you to be happy, and it appears that this human does that for you. Sooner or later, I have to accept that she's an important part of your life."

Sans grinned. "I suppose I love you, too."

"Now, let's get to work. These tests won't run themselves."

Sans straightened his lab coat and followed the taller monster to the counters.

After a few hours, Sans turned to his dad. "Hey, come look at this." He gestured to the microscope in front of him.

Gaster made his way over.

"This is acting really weird. It ain't supposed to do that, is it?"

Gaster sighed. "Sans, if I've told you this once, I've told you a million times. When you're working in my lab, you are a scientist and I expect you speak like one."

Sans grinned. "This here sample is actin' like a crazy-puff, Pops. Puh-leez, can yeh look at it?"

Gaster groaned. "Never mind."

Sans couldn't help but laugh out loud as he moved out of the way.

Gaster studied the specimen on the slide for a few moments before he stood up straight.

"I stand corrected; that is weird."

He hurried to a cupboard a few yards away, grabbed a few things out of it, and returned.

"Show me which specimen you used, Sans. Quickly."

They got to work, checking and rechecking sample after sample. After several hours, Gaster sat back and looked up at the ceiling.

"I'm not sure I can believe these findings," he said softly.

Sans shook his head; he wasn't sure he could either.

"A virus that can infect both human and monster? This is unheard of, Sans."

"I know, Dad. It's kinda freaky, too."

Gaster glared at his son for a moment before he gave up. Although it really did annoy him when Sans chose to speak like he didn't have a doctorate degree, he had to agree—it was freaky. No illness had ever crossed between humans and monsters before. Perhaps it had something to do with co-habitation; viruses were figuring out how to mutate enough to spread across all available hosts.

"We should let the humans know." Sans said.

Gaster looked at Sans and thought for a moment. He wanted to say no, they shouldn't alert anyone. This virus that had caused the monster version of a common cold for ages could potentially wipe out a good number of humans if spread.

"Dad, I don't like that look on your face. We're not letting this get out."

Gaster shook his head. "No, of course not, Son. I'll let my colleagues know immediately. Will you prepare some samples? They'll want to see this for themselves."

Sans breathed a sigh of relief and nodded. There had only been a small handful of occasions where his dad's access to a medical lab and hatred for humans had seemed like a terrible combination. This would just be one more such case. Sans knew his dad wouldn't actually do anything, especially not now that a human was so important to his son.

~LM~

Two weeks passed. Gaster and Sans continued studying the new virus to determine its weak points and how to kill it quickly and efficiently. So far, they didn't have any answers. It seemed to mutate too quickly.

"I want to have you and Frisk over for dinner sometime this weekend," Sans said seriously as he dabbed a sample onto a slide. He placed a cover slip on top and gingerly put it in place on the microscope.

"Why this weekend?" Gaster asked, distracted by his own specimens.

"I dunno. I just feel like with all this going down with the virus and all, I want you two to get to know each other better." He shrugged like he didn't feel impending doom in his soul with every breath he took.

"Sans, are you okay?" Gaster looked up, suddenly concerned. He hadn't heard that worried tone of voice in a long time.

"This thing is really…it's getting scary, Dad. I know for us it's a few days under the weather and we're fine. What will happen if she catches it? Could it kill her? It sure as hell ravages the human samples we give it here." He gestured to the microscope, trying to keep a hold on his emotions.

Gaster got up and walked over to place a hand on Sans' shoulder. "I would be happy to come to dinner, Sans." He thought for a second. "Perhaps 'happy' isn't the best descriptor, but I wouldn't hate it, either."

Sans smiled. "Thanks, Dad."

Gaster squeezed his son's shoulder once before walking back over to his microscope.

They worked in silence for a few minutes as Sans thought about how he could protect Frisk from this virus. They had only gotten closer the last two weeks, both physically and romantically. He was still hesitant to make love to her, but he thought maybe he'd finally figured that out. If he wasn't careful with his magic, he could really hurt her. He wasn't sure how to be careful in that respect. He wanted to figure it out with her, but he had to do some of his own research before he could risk putting her in any danger.

A few hours later, the lab doors opened. Sans turned around to see four men in dark suits walk up to the landing.

"Excuse me, Dr. Gaster?" the one in front called out.

Gaster turned around, already annoyed. "Who are you and what do you want?"

The man in front held up a badge. "I'm Dr. Krall from the Center for Disease Control. My colleagues and I are here to collect your research for the Transference Virus."

Gaster's good brow furrowed. "Excuse me? I've sent all the samples _my_ colleagues would need, and this is certainly not how they should ask for more." He turned around. "Good day."

"We're not asking, and we're not taking 'no' for an answer." Dr. Krall took a few steps forward. "I need all samples packed up, all research printed, and all files transferred to our system before being deleted from yours."

Sans stood up. "You can't just take all of his work," he all but shouted. "We're close to a cure."

Dr. Krall didn't look impressed. "We'll need that research, too, then."

"I'm afraid you're not going to get anything from me," Gaster said matter-of-factly as he stood up to his full height.

The men looked at each other uneasily.

"There are appropriate channels to go about requesting any of my work, and this is certainly not one of them."

"Again, we're not asking. You know the Center for Disease Control has been wary of your access to equipment of this nature for some time now, and now we have proof that it should have been shut down ages ago."

Sans couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Nobody's shutting anything down," he said with a growl. "You guys need to leave."

"Sans, please calm down," Gaster said hastily.

Dr. Krall took another two steps forward. "This virus is exactly what we need to properly shut everything of yours down, Dr. Gaster. We always knew you'd create something this diabolical."

"Create—?" Gaster was appalled. "I certainly didn't create this!"

"Why else would you threaten your colleagues?"

Sans thought maybe now was a good time to see what would happen if a human were infected. He discreetly reached behind him and wrapped his phalanges around a test tube full of the virus.

"I was simply sharing information; it's not my fault if they can't understand the difference."

"Regardless. This is getting tiring. Boys, gather the stuff and let's get out of here."

The four men rushed forward to gather everything that they could. Gaster tried to stop them, but a gun was drawn. The man tripped, and the bullet fired.

Sans didn't even think. He threw his left arm up and created a barrier between his father and the bullet. The tube with the virus in it flew up as well. Before it hit the ground, he caught it with magic and set it on a nearby table.

The room was deadly quiet for a few heartbeats.

"What on earth was that?" Dr. Krall asked, his voice shaking.

"That was nothing," Sans said, a little too quickly.

"He has magic!" Dr. Krall yelled. "Weapons magic!"

"N-no I don't." Sans stepped back and looked at his father.

Gaster stood frozen, unable to help his son. His mind was invaded with images of a large ice pick inside a machine he was strapped into. The scars on his head ached as he watched his son being carried out of the room. It only vaguely dawned on him that there were more people in the room. Instead of the dark suits of the CDC men, there were white lab coats and shouted orders that he barely heard.

He would never forget the look of heartbreak on Sans' face. He had failed his son.

The room was silent. Gaster reached up to feebly wipe away purple tears from his face. How could he have let that happen? He just let his son and his research get taken from him.

To hell with the research. All of it could be redone.

His son was gone.

* * *

A/N: Try not to be too mad at Gaster? PTSD is a psychotic bitch.


	17. Chapter 16

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

"G-Gaster?" Alphys said for the second time. "Did you prank call me?" She laughed nervously.

"No prank," Gaster finally said. He wasn't sure how he remembered to speak.

Alphys was suddenly serious. "What…what happened?"

"Sans."

"What's w-wrong with him, Gaster?" She could just imagine all the different accidents that could happen at their lab.

"Alphys, they took him. I…I couldn't…I didn't even try…" He sank further into himself, curling up in the corner of the dark lab and breathing too quickly to feel any relief.

"Breathe, Gaster. Talk to m-me." She turned and walked to a quiet corner in the lab she was in. Humans walked around her, and she tried to ignore them.

"I couldn't stop them."

"O-okay, tell me who 'they' are."

"I don't know." Gaster was close to hysterical. "Center for Disease Control…they came in to take my research. I wouldn't let them, so they said they'd use force. Sans…he was trying to protect me."

Alphys knew exactly what Gaster was talking about. "We'll find him," she assured him quietly. "Tell me who took him. What d-did they look like?"

~LM~

Frisk frowned at her phone. Sans was supposed to have been there an hour ago. He had never been late for anything, but especially not a date. This particular date had seemed very important to him; they were going to have dinner with his dad.

It was a little unnerving that she hadn't heard from him in three days, either. He was usually the one sending her reminders about what they were going to do together on their date nights. They were always innocent texts, but she loved getting them.

Another two hours later, she decided to see if Papyrus knew what was going on. Maybe Sans had just forgotten about their date. It would have been unusual, but not entirely impossible. He had been really stressed about something at work for a few weeks.

The phone rang five times before it went to voicemail. That was another unusual thing—even when he was forbidden to talk to her, Papyrus still answered her calls. Maybe she'd really fucked up somehow. She shook her head at herself; Sans would have at least told her that she'd done something wrong before punishing her for it.

She tried one more time. When he still didn't answer, she turned to her third favorite monster. As the line rang with Alphys' _Mew Mew Kissy Cutie_ ringback tone, Frisk tried to think of more reasons that Sans would forget about their date.

"Hello?" Alphys answered.

"Hi!" Frisk all but shouted; she'd been working herself into a nervous frenzy with thoughts of Sans breaking up with her.

"F-Frisk! What are you doing?"

"Calling to see if you know what's going on with Sans. He won't answer my texts and he's three hours late for our date tonight."

The line was silent for what felt like eternity.

"Alphys?"

"Um…I…they didn't tell you?"

Frisk felt the color drain from her face. "Tell me what?" Did something happen? Was Sans unable to answer his phone? "Alphys, they didn't tell me what?!"

"Oh, dear. U-um. Okay, Frisk, you n-need to sit down, because I need to t-tell you something you really don't w-want to hear."

~LM~

Frisk was filled half with anger, half with panicked horror as she stormed down the street to Sans' house. Alphys had to be lying, although Frisk wasn't sure why she would lie.

She pounded on the door, prepared to break it down if she had to. She just needed to see that dumb skeleton's face and hear another stupid fucking pun. Gods, it couldn't be true.

When the door finally opened, she was shocked into silence by what she saw.

Papyrus stood in front of her, both eyes glowing orange. His famous grin was gone—in it's place was a scowl that made Frisk pray to all the gods she could think of that she was somehow still on his good side.

"Papyrus?"

She couldn't bring herself to ask the question that she needed to ask.

His scowl softened and his eyes watered with orange tears. He nodded before he grabbed her and pulled her into a hug.

She hugged him back as tightly as she could, desperate for comfort.

Almost as soon as her feet hit the ground, every ounce of anger she'd felt before returned.

"How could you not tell me?" she all but shouted.

Papyrus pulled her inside and shut the door. He tried to think of something to say to her when Gaster came into the room.

"We didn't tell you because it's none of your business," he said with a scowl.

"What the fuck do you mean it's none of my business?" she shrieked. "He's my boyfriend!"

"He's my son and Papyrus' brother; can you really believe your bond to him is stronger than ours?"

She growled unimpressively and stepped closer to Gaster. "Let me tell you something, _Doctor_." She thrust a finger up toward his face. "I love him. I love him more than your damn logical words can describe, no matter what you want to say about me. I will do anything— _anything_ —to help him. Don't you dare leave me out of this, do you hear me? I might not have magic or be able to summon weapons, but I'm not useless either. I'm smart. I know humans. And I swear to all the fucking gods that I will make every single one who touches him pay dearly."

Gaster looked at Papyrus for a second, then back down at the girl in front of him. He had to admit that he liked the girl's spirit.

"What do you mean summon weapons?" Gaster asked, trying to play dumb.

"Don't fuck with me, Gaster. I know all about Sans' magic and I know in my soul that it's the reason he was taken. He told me once that if humans knew what he was capable of he wouldn't be killed. He'd said there were worse things." It didn't take her a second to realize what they were going to do to him. "They're hurting him the way they hurt you." Her voice broke and she lurched forward, falling to her knees. She buried her face in her hands, tears overflowing and pooling in her palms. "Gods, they're hurting him." Her stomach hurt at the thought of him in any kind of pain.

She felt a bony hand on her shoulder and sobbed.

"Frisk, we need to plan," Papyrus said softly.

She couldn't remember ever hearing him say anything that wasn't full volume. It surprised her enough to look up at him.

"Okay. Can I please help?" she sniffled and looked at Papyrus.

Papyrus looked over at Gaster. His dad nodded, so he felt better about letting Frisk in on 'Project: Save Sans.'

"You realize you will probably need to fight humans?" Gaster asked.

"Yes, I know. I'll kill them if I have to."

"You would kill your own kind…for a monster?" Gaster wasn't sure what to think of that. With humans, it was usually their kind over everything else.

Frisk looked up into Gaster's face and made hers appear made of stone. "Sans isn't just some monster, Gaster. How many times do I have to say that I love him before you understand what that means? No human on this earth could ever mean more to me than he does." She thought for a quick second. "Maybe my mom and my brother, but that's beside the point. They're not the ones hurting him."

Gaster nodded. The look on her face told him exactly what he needed to know. It was what Sans had been trying to tell him all along—this human was different.

"Okay."

"Are we done arguing over this?" Papyrus asked. "I'd like to save my brother now."

They spent the next few hours trying to figure out where he would have been taken. They called in Undyne and Alphys who both had connections to human laboratories. Undyne worked security in one of the top facilities and Alphys was a scientist at another.

It was determined that Sans had been taken by a faction of the military whose sole job it was to find and contain any monsters with magic. They had disguised themselves as a monster training camp, when their small operation had been in the works since before the last war when it was theorized that magical monsters could still exist. Their purpose was two-fold: one, keep on the lookout for any monster that seemed capable of wielding magic that could touch a human; and two, if any were found, to find out how they used that magic.

"I'm quitting my job after this," Alphys said softly. "I can't believe my lab is associated with these brutes."

"You know you have a job with me," Gaster said. "I could use your brilliance."

Frisk wasn't sure why Alphys blushed. "I'm not that smart," she muttered.

Undyne smacked her shoulder. "Knock that off, babe."

"I don't hire idiots," Gaster said matter-of-factly.

"O-of course not," Alphys said quickly. "That's not what I meant."

"We could also use you in the computer room for this endeavor. I assume you'll be able to help?"

"Sans s-saved my life during the war, of course I'll be there for him."

Frisk looked over at Alphys, even more confused. "He what?"

Alphys nodded. "I can't summon…summon weapons," she stuttered. "I was cornered, and he saved me."

Huh.

"Don't feel bad, babe; I _can_ summon weapons and I still had to rely on that shit to help me out a few times. Humans are unrelenting!" She punched Frisk in the arm.

"OW!" Frisk rubbed her arm. Her hand tingled a little, but she was sure nothing was broken.

"Sorry," Undyne said after Alphys gave her a dark look.

"We need to rest, and I say we get going early. Before the sun rises, even."

Frisk looked over at Papyrus as he spoke. If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she would never have believed it was possible for him to be so stern.

"Agreed," Undyne said heartily.

"Um," Frisk started. "Can I have a weapon to take?"

They all looked at her for a moment. "I mean, I can probably get something, but is there any way I could use something that one of you summon?"

Papyrus shook his head. "Anything we summon would be too dangerous for you; it could hurt you instead of allowing you to use it. We'll find something for you. For now, let's all go to bed."

Frisk decided she was going to sleep on Sans' bed that night. She curled into his blankets and sniffed his pillow. She missed him so much more now than she had ever before. She figured it was because she honestly didn't know what they were going to find the next day. For all they knew, the humans could have killed him by now.

She shook her head to get rid of the thoughts and pressed her face into the pillow.

"No," she said aloud, refusing to believe that he was that badly injured. "He's going to be fine." She sniffled and hugged the pillow tighter. "He has to be."

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much for reading! I'd love to know your thoughts!


	18. Chapter 17

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Sans opened his eyes slowly. Everything around him was blurry for a moment as his head spun. There was a strange tug somewhere in his chest, like he wanted to expel everything he'd eaten for the last few days. That was new; he'd never actually felt nauseous before. If he wasn't feeling it now, he'd say that skeletons couldn't get that way.

He swallowed hard and lifted a hand to rub his skull. His phalanges hit something hard, and he nearly jumped out of his own bones when a loud _thunk_ reverberated around him.

He realized then that he was in a small, enclosed space. The thick glass that surrounded him was slanted so he was almost upright, but he was still laying down on some kind of hard table. He reached out and touched the glass. Although it was clear, he had a hard time making out any details.

Had he been drugged?

He closed his eyes tightly and tried to remember how he'd gotten here. He remembered being in his dad's lab, the men that came for his research, the one that tried to kill him…using his magic. He'd tried to protect his father, but in doing so he'd practically killed himself.

 _Nice job, numbskull_ , he thought to himself.

After he'd been taken, he didn't remember much. It wouldn't surprise him if they had figured out some way of dosing him so he'd go unconscious. Better not risk getting their asses evaporated by the magic-wielding monster.

Just as he was about to try to figure out a way to open the glass whatever he was in, he heard muffled voices. He strained to hear them.

"And you're sure he uses magic?" a gruff voice asked.

"One hundred percent," a familiar voice answered. "A bone wall appeared out of nowhere, and this monster's eye was glowing. That's no coincidence."

Sans' soul began beating faster as he recognized Dr. Krall's voice. Well, shit. He was in deep trouble; he could feel it.

"Ah, he's awake. Good. Maybe he'll just tell us how to access it."

Laughter followed the comment.

A loud hiss startled him. The table moved slightly so he was a little more reclined, then the glass opened up.

Three men stood around him. He recognized Dr. Krall and another man from his dad's lab, but the third—the one in the middle—was unfamiliar.

"Where am I?" he asked. It hurt to talk. He felt dry.

"Exactly where you belong, Monster," the unfamiliar man said. He smiled. "We're going to find out how you use that magic of yours. My boys here are very good at what they do." He patted both men's shoulders.

Sans didn't like the sound of that.

Without another word, the man walked away, leaving Sans with the men he knew were going to kill him. He could feel it in his soul. He was as good as dead.

~LM~

"This is something I've been working on," Alphys said softly the next day as she pulled out a small container. "I don't think any of us monsters can use it, but Frisk will."

Frisk's interest was piqued. She noticed two things: one, that Alphys' stutter was gone when she was in scientist mode; and two, that whatever this was she was going to be useful. "What is it?"

"It's a recording device that fits on your eye like a contact."

Okay, that didn't sound so awesome. "Will it hurt?" She asked with a grimace.

Undyne laughed. "Of course it will! It goes on your eye!"

Alphys shot her a look. "Actually, no. Have you ever worn contacts?"

Frisk shook her head. "I've been cursed with perfect vision my whole life."

Alphys smiled. "That's good." She opened the case and pulled out what looked like a ring box. "So, this box actually contains the recording device and it's Bluetooth remote. The remote will act like the storage for what you record. Basically, it will see what you see. Try to keep your eyes open."

That didn't sound too bad, Frisk thought. It was better than what she had imagined, anyway.

"I can do that."

Undyne groaned. "Man, it would be so much better if you had to attach the whole thing to her eye. That would have looked cool."

Alphys giggled. "I bet you would have liked that."

Frisk took the box and decided to let them flirt alone. She went into the bathroom and opened the box. Inside was a small switch—currently in the 'off' position—an even smaller box, and what looked like a USB port. She pulled out the smaller box and opened it to find the contact lens waiting for her. She shuddered a little before she pulled it out.

The knock on the door startled her. She squeaked and looked up, not sure what she was expecting. Undyne chortled and held out a small bottle.

"You might want the solution to your problem, punk."

She took the bottle and smirked when she realized it was contact solution. "Thanks, Undyne."

She looked the monster over for a moment. She looked ready for another war in her armor. Alphys was wearing her lab coat to hopefully blend in. Nobody could convince Undyne to do the same.

Frisk was wearing a camouflage outfit she'd gotten at a thrift store. She wanted to try to get in and out as stealthily as they could. She knew Gaster and Undyne both were hoping to kill as many people as possible, but Frisk had tried to talk some sense into them. Their mission was to save Sans, not to start another war.

She took a deep breath before she opened the bottle Undyne had given her, coated the contact lens in the solution, then decided it was going in her left eye. She wasn't going to admit she chose that eye because of Sans, but she doubted anyone would ask.

She was surprised by how easily it went in. She blinked a few times and looked around. Nothing seemed different at all.

"Huh. That's cool."

She could practically feel Undyne's disappointment beside her. "It would have been better if it jammed in there like a corkscrew or something."

Frisk looked at her, a little horrified. "That would not have been better. Did you want me to end up with an eye patch like yours?"

Undyne lifted the eye patch. Frisk was a little surprised by the action. She had been curious about the injury since she first met Undyne.

Her eye was milky white in color and surrounded by scarred blue tissue that was darker than her normal aquamarine skin tone. Frisk noted that the scarred tissue looked like a little like a star. She wasn't sure what to think when the milky white of her injured eye began to glow.

Undyne looked up. A bolt of light flew out of her eye and crashed into the ceiling above Frisk. She laughed as Frisk coughed and tried to get the dust out of her hair.

"You couldn't have an eye patch like mine if you tried. This wasn't some ordinary accident."

"What's going on in there?" Papyrus shouted. "You better not be destroying my house!"

Undyne smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Paps."

"What did happen?" Frisk asked, gesturing to Undyne's eye. "If you don't mind me asking?"

"It was during the last war. Not the Great War, although that would have been awesome! So, there I am, killing my way through the humans trying to slaughter a family of Moldsmols." She hunched down and spread her arms as though she were preparing to throw a spear. "When all of a sudden some douche fires a fucking cannon into my face! I mean, it wasn't really a cannon, but it wasn't an ordinary gun either. I was out for a long time. That was actually when I met Sans. All I remember is being surrounded by this blue shit and thinking I was on my way to heaven. Turns out, he teleported me to his dad who healed me up as best as he could."

Frisk smiled sadly. She remembered the feel of being surrounded by Sans' magic. She wrapped her arms around herself and reminded herself that they were going to save him. She cleared her throat and looked up.

"How come you can shoot lightning out of it?"

Undyne laughed. "That's not lightning, you nerd. It's pure magic directly from my soul. The wound didn't heal right because it was so bad, but it was enough to live." She shrugged like it wasn't anything serious.

Alphys squeezed in past Undyne.

"Let's have a look at you," She said softly.

After Alphys inspected the contact lens and how it fit, she took the box and flipped the switch. She assured Frisk that it should be completely painless, and also that it should not interfere with her normal vision. Frisk confirmed both, and they all left the bathroom.

"Will this pick up sounds?" Frisk asked.

"Actually yes," Alphys answered. "The sounds are picked up by this device," she held up the box, "rather than the lens, but we will be able to hear what goes on around you. Now let's turn this off for now and check on the boys." She flipped the switch, closed the box, and handed it to Frisk.

Frisk put the box in her pocket.

"Are we finally ready to leave?" Papyrus asked as the women walked into the living room. He was anxious to find his brother. He had never in his life gone a day without Sans, and he wasn't sure how to start. He didn't know what he would do if he couldn't ever see him again. The thought was so terrifying he had to push as much emotion down as he could and just be cold. He had to focus on facts and just getting this done before he could let himself feel anything again.

Frisk was a little surprised at what Papyrus was wearing. She had only ever seen him in nice, tailored outfits, and once a costume he called a 'battle body'. But now, he was in a large red hoodie and black pants. It almost seemed to Frisk that he was trying to mimic his brother. The thought made her sad.

Gaster wore his traditional dark pants but had changed into a black sweater and wore a long black trench coat over everything. Frisk thought the clothing with his scars made him look even more threatening than he had in his lab coat.

"Let's get this show on the road!" Undyne shouted.

They all agreed. They piled into Undyne's Jeep and were finally on their way.

~LM~

Tears fell down his face as Sans tried so hard to just hold on. He was stronger than they were, no matter what they wanted.

After Dr. Krall and Dr. Masen had cut all of his clothes away and sprayed him down with something that smelled like sterilizer and made him cough, they started poking and prodding all over his body with various instruments. Some hurt, some just felt weird. Every attempt he made at protest was met with a sharper jab. He learned quickly to keep his mouth shut.

The most tender spot they found was his sternum.

"Here," Dr. Krall said.

Dr. Masen agreed. "I'll get the others."

"What's there?" Sans asked.

Dr. Krall acted as if he hadn't heard the question. Sans asked again, louder.

After realizing that he wasn't going to get an answer, he looked around. He was terrified at all the dust he saw within his own chamber. He knew his would soon join the rest, but he was determined to last as long as possible.

Across the large, gray room was another pod with another monster inside. Large and furry, the monster signed to him to stay calm and don't make any sudden movements.

"They're going to hurt you," the monster signed discreetly.

Sans nodded in understanding. "Why?" He signed back.

"They're looking for your soul."

He swallowed. This wasn't good. They wanted to steal his magic from him. They were probably stupid enough to not realize that his soul and his magic were one and the same. If he died, so did his magic.

"Do they know?"

The monster shook his head in the negative. "Just lie back and relax. Don't fight them or they'll make the pain worse."

Sans had a feeling the other monster had been here a while. "Do you have magic?"

The monster nodded.

Before their signed conversation could continue, Dr. Masen came back with three other men in white lab coats. Sans decided that, if he ever got out of this, his own lab coat was going to change color. Maybe blue.

"Where is it?" One of the new doctors asked.

"Sternum."

Sans swallowed again and took a deep breath.

"Can we make it stop looking at us?" another doctor asked. "It's creepy."

His brow bones furrowed.

"We're not putting it out of its misery," the third new doctor said with a scary grin. "I like it when they scream." He held up a scalpel and took a step closer. "I get to go first."

~LM~

"Okay, Alphys, you know what you need to do?" Gaster asked with a quiet reassurance in his tone.

Alphys took a deep breath and nodded. "I know."

"I'm with you the whole way, babe," Undyne said. "I'll get you in there, then you work your magic. Or, well, your expertise. I guess."

Alphys smiled and stood on her toes. Undyne grinned and bent down to kiss her.

After the couple left, Frisk sat back and waited. She pulled the box out of her pocket and turned it on. They all had on communication earbuds to speak with one another. Their plan was to have Alphys turn them on once she was settled in the computer room and give them the green light.

"So, we're here to rescue my boyfriend," Frisk said, speaking into the box. Both Gaster and Papyrus gave her a look before realizing she was documenting. "We're going to try to do this with as little life lost as possible. I'd like to say I'm confident we can do this without hurting anyone, but I feel like that's unrealistic. I know humans a little too well." She dug out her mirror and looked at herself. She felt odd, but at the same time she knew this would all help them once they all got out.

"Sans is my boyfriend; he's a skeleton with magic. I'm here with Papyrus, his brother." She made a point to lean forward and look at Papyrus. He gave her a small wave. "And his dad, Gaster." She turned her head to Gaster. He scowled at her. She couldn't help but smile. "Needless to say, we're all very worried about Sans and hope he's okay. We're waiting for our computer team to get in and let us know it's safe to start heading in."

She sat back and looked at the building. She silently wondered where Sans was in the building and what he was doing. Or, rather, what was being done to him. She sucked in a deep breath and reminded herself that he was a lot stronger than he looked; he would be okay.

With each passing moment, Frisk was getting more and more eager. She could only imagine how much harder it was for Gaster and Papyrus. As much as she hated the words Gaster had spoken, she knew that the bond between father and son, and between brothers, was stronger than what she had with him. It hurt her heart worse to think of the pain they must be in.

A sudden, loud pop made her jump. A static screech followed the pop.

"H-hello?"

She touched her earbud. "Alphys?"

"We hear you," Gaster said.

"Loud and clear," Papyrus added.

Frisk was thrilled she could hear each voice through the comm.

"I'm in and settled. An alarm was triggered, but I managed to stop it and hopefully passed it off as a mistake. I'll do my best to unlock doors and guide you through, but I don't have access to the full building. Be careful, guys!"

"Will do," the three said in unison.

"Let's go get my son," Gaster all but growled.

Frisk waited outside for a moment while Papyrus and Gaster went to find her a weapon. She hated standing back, but she certainly hated the idea of going in without a way to protect herself even worse. Soon enough, however, the two came back with an arsenal.

"Do you think you can use any of these?" Papyrus asked as he dropped five guns, two knives, and a compass in front of her.

She smirked and picked up the compass. "I like this." She put it in her back pocket and then picked out two guns to carry. She made sure they were loaded, put the safety on, then strapped the handgun holster into place before lifting the shoulder strap of the rifle over her head.

"Okay, I'm ready," she said. She had never felt more powerful in her life.

They made it past the first several doors without much interference. Their goal was to allow Frisk to get past the human element, since there was no doubt that monsters would be out of place. As she passed people, Papyrus and Gaster snuck behind her.

They didn't have any trouble until they reached a door that Alphys couldn't open.

"I think they're on to us!" Alphys said with a groan. "I-I…Undyne, I think someone's coming!"

Gunshots fired.

"Is everything okay?" Frisk demanded.

"It is now," Undyne answered with a huff of excitement, "but they're _definitely_ on to us!"

"This isn't supposed to be fun," Alphys reminded her girlfriend.

"I can't help it," Undyne whined. "Battle is in my blood!"

Frisk could hear a commotion on the other end of the door. Shouts and hollers of confusion and fear were evident among orders to stay calm. For a moment, she felt bad for them.

Papyrus threw a barrage of bones at the doors.

The screech of metal on metal and wood bursting open caused Frisk to cringe.

Papyrus stepped over the rubble and held up his hand, both eyes glowing with orange fire. Bones appeared in an attack position, pointed directly at the people standing sentry.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen," he said with a scowl. "I have one question, and I expect it to be answered quickly and accurately. If I am not satisfied with the honesty of your answer, you will be punished. Am I understood?"

Frisk wasn't even sure who this skeleton was, but she admired his bluntness. She waited for Papyrus to continue as she listened to the mumbled and scared assurances that his warning was understood.

"Good. Now for my question: Where the fuck is my brother?"


	19. Chapter 18

A/N: WARNING: Some violence and gore appears in this chapter y'all. Gaster ain't playin' around. Enjoy!

* * *

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Frisk nearly laughed out loud. If it had been any other situation, she might have. Instead, she focused her attention on the humans in front of them, trying to decide which one would have the most information. She looked around, making sure to get a good view of every face in the room.

A person on the far left, wearing the customary camouflage uniform, raised his hand.

Papyrus nodded. "Speak, Human."

"Wh-who is your b-brother?" he stuttered, clearly afraid of saying the wrong thing.

"He is a skeleton like me. Well, like me but smaller than me. His name is Sans. If I don't get him back, you will all pay."

A few of the people perked up when Papyrus said 'skeleton'. Frisk caught their reactions and felt a little euphoric; they still had a chance to get him back!

"I know where he is!" a girl in the front shouted.

A few others tried to shush her, but she refused to let them; she wanted to live, dammit.

"He's in the experimentation lab."

Frisk flinched. She could see Gaster do the same.

"And where is that?" Frisk demanded. She stepped up on the rubble next to Papyrus. She wanted to look dangerous, but she knew there was no chance in hell when she stood next to the second tallest monster she knew. For good measure, she cocked the weapon in her arms.

"It's just down the hall. I can show you!" the girl ran forward. She skidded to a stop when one of Papyrus' bones leapt forward toward her. "I want to help," she said honestly. "The things they do here…they're not right. Please, let me help."

Papyrus pulled the bone back and nodded. "Lead the way. The rest of you, stay here. Alphys, do you have a way to seal this door?" he asked into his comm.

"N-no, Paps. You literally destroyed it."

Papyrus frowned. "Dang it." He sighed and looked at his dad. "The Great Papyrus shall wait here to make sure they cooperate. Please find my brother."

Gaster put a hand on Papyrus' shoulder. As much as he wanted to take his son's place, he knew that what lay ahead was more dangerous. It was better that Papyrus stay where he was safer.

"I will, my son."

As they walked away, Frisk caught the sight of a wall of bones surrounding the humans. She was scared for the skeleton, but she had to trust that Papyrus knew how to take care of himself.

Frisk walked in the front with the woman who was leading them. She was only an inch or two taller than Frisk with chin-length blonde hair, blue eyes, and freckles.

"So what's your name?" She asked.

The woman looked at her warily. "Megan."

"Hi, Megan. I'm Frisk."

Gaster groaned. "We're not here to make friends," he all but growled.

Megan flinched.

Frisk attempted to growl back. "But it doesn't hurt anything if I try, now does it?"

"How do you do that?" Megan asked.

"Do what?"

"Talk to them like that. Aren't you scared?"

Frisk snorted. "Of Gaster? Well, yes, a little, but he's my boyfriend's dad."

Megan looked confused. "Your boyfriend is a monster?"

"Yep, the one we're here to save. Are we close?"

Megan nodded. "Yeah, just up here and to the left. I have to warn you—"

The hall suddenly exploded with sound as a gunshot rang out. Megan dropped to the floor. Frisk turned quickly to see a man in uniform holding out a handgun.

"She has to warn you that you're about to die," the man said.

In an instant, he was surrounded by what Frisk would describe as the most beautiful purple light. It swirled with incandescence for a moment before the man began to crumple in on himself. Frisk cringed at the sounds of bones crunching, flesh dripping to the floor, and the man's screams as they turned to gurgles. Eventually, he was nothing more than a pile of bloodied carnage of the tiled floor.

"What was that?" She demanded. "We're not here to kill people. I could have shot him in the leg or something."

Gaster shrugged. "He was going to kill us, so it was self-defense. You're welcome. And that? That was just a small taste of my magic." He smirked at her.

Oh shit. Maybe she should be more scared of Gaster.

She swallowed and decided it would be best not to say anything as they continued down the hall. She felt bad for just leaving Megan and the mess of what used to be a man just laying there, but she had a bigger goal.

Finally, they were at their destination. The double doors had no windows. They were solid metal with a sign on either door that read 'LAB.' Frisk sucked in a deep breath before she pushed on the door. Of course it was locked.

"Allow me," Gaster said with a smile. A swirl of purple magic slipped through the cracks near the lock, there was a thick, hard click, and then the doors opened.

"You could have done that with the other door," she accused.

"I could have, if Papyrus hadn't destroyed it first. I did not want him to do that, Frisk. I'd rather he was here with us where I could keep an eye on him. If you think I'm not worried sick about both of my boys, you are very wrong."

Without another word, Gaster entered the room. He had surrounded himself and Frisk with a purple force field that sheltered them both from the rain of bullets that met them. It appeared they had been expected.

Frisk looked around, stunned. It was nothing like what she had expected. Instead of tables, beakers, and white everywhere, the room was painted a dull gray. Pods lined the room on either side, most open and empty. There were two with occupants. She looked at the first on her left briefly, not understanding what she was really seeing, before she caught sight of the one across from it.

"SANS!" she screamed. She removed the safety from her firearm and ran toward Sans' pod. She had to shoot three people, two in the leg and one in the arm, before she finally made it. She could feel Gaster's magic still surrounding her and silently thanked him because there was no way she couldn't focus one hundred percent on the skeleton in the pod.

He laid there, his eyes closed and his hands and feet strapped down. He looked frail. He was wearing only a white sheet over his hips, and Frisk figured he was probably actually naked in the pod.

"Baby," she whimpered. "Baby, look at me." She pressed her hands to glass surrounding him.

Sans didn't respond to her.

She curled a fist and pounded it against the glass. Still no response.

"Gaster, what do I do? How do I get him out?" She screeched the words, terrified that they'd come all this way for nothing.

Gaster was already beside her, staring at something to the side of the pod. She looked up at him, frustrated that he wasn't helping.

"What do I do?!" she demanded again.

He reached out and gently touched a jar with a white heart in it. Frisk was confused. The heart was upside down.

"They did it," he said softly. "I'm so sorry, my son."

"What? They did what?"

Gaster looked at her, and the pain in his face made her gasp. "That's his soul," he cried.

Before the words could settle and make sense to her, she watched his face scrunch into a terrifying mess of hatred. He turned and screamed as he threw an attack of some sort.

Frisk couldn't see what it was. She couldn't really care at that point, because his words finally made sense. Sans' soul was in the jar beside him.

Tears that had welled in her eyes finally began to fall. She reached out and gently touched the jar. What did this even mean? Was he dead? She thought monsters turned to dust when they were dead. Maybe that meant he was somehow still alive.

She found a button that looked like it might be a switch and pressed it. The pod hissed and began to open. She wanted to feel triumphant, but she only felt hopeless. She took the jar and managed to get it open. She searched Sans' body for any kind of scar that they might have created getting his soul out of him. She only cried harder at the sight of the many wounds covering his body. Finally, she found it: his sternum was cracked in half.

She reached inside the jar, not sure what else to do, and grabbed his soul. For a brief moment, she thought the pain might kill her. She'd been shocked before, small instances when she turned on a light or even when she'd touched Sans' flower. This was nothing like that. She felt like she had put her hands on a live wire.

She could handle it, she told herself. She had to put Sans' soul back where it belonged. She didn't even know this would work.

She put his soul down on the crack and prayed it just…reabsorbed. It didn't.

"Gaster! Help me please!" She tried pushing on it, but nothing happened. She couldn't let herself push too hard. "GASTER!"

"What the hell are you doing?" Gaster shouted.

She looked up, and he took a step back. Her eyes were glowing.

"Help me put it back. Please!" She tried again.

"Let me handle this," he said softly as he took his son's soul from her grasp. "You hold them off." He gestured to the human army behind him.

She nodded and wiped her face. "I can do that."

She turned and looked at the faces of the men and women who were there to kill them all. She noticed a few shocked expressions. She really hoped they were all prepared to die, because if Sans didn't live, she was going to massacre the place.

One person raised their rifle, then another. Fear tore through her insides. This was it. She and her friends were all about to die.

She thought of the pain Sans must have felt when they ripped his soul from his body, and her anger was renewed. As a few of the people began to run forward, she held up her hands. She couldn't say why she didn't use her weapons. She felt the same electrocution from Sans' soul rushing through her entire body as the edges of her vision began to turn blue. She heard herself screaming, and suddenly her chest burst open. She was sure she was dead.

She fell to her knees and wondered how that could hurt if she was dead.

"What was that?"

Gaster's voice sounded muffled. She looked up, attempting to focus her vision. It took a moment, but finally Gaster's face came together.

"What was that?" She asked, not realizing he'd just asked her the same question.

Gaster looked at Sans for a moment before he met her eyes again. "I think…I think I know what happened. Oh…this is a development, isn't it? We have to get him home so he can fix you."

She furrowed her brow, even more confused.

"Why don't you get the other one. I've got Sans. His soul is back where it should be, but it will take him a while to heal."

She had forgotten there was another monster in the room. She stood on shaky legs and looked around her. Bodies lay all around her, but there was no blood. Nothing new, anyway. She wasn't sure if she'd killed everyone, but she let herself hope that they were just stunned.

She stepped carefully over people as she made her way to the other monster. He was tall, nearly as tall as Gaster, with white fur covering every inch of him save for two small black marks under his eyes. He had a pair of gray shorts on, and Frisk wondered why this monster was allowed modesty when Sans was not. She unlocked his pod. His soul was not in the container beside him. She hoped that meant it was still inside him.

"I think we might need to switch," she said as she turned to Gaster. "There's no way I'm gonna be able to carry this guy."

Now that his son was going to be okay, Gaster could allow himself to pay attention to the other monster. One look, and he knew the entire world was about to change.

"I think you're right."

He carefully handed Sans over to Frisk, making sure she was okay with his weight, before surrounding the other monster in purple magic.

"Not like that!" Frisk shrieked.

Gaster laughed. "I'm not going to hurt him, Frisk. He's…I must be very careful, and this is the only way I know how to make sure he doesn't get hurt any further."

She watched in horror as the furry monster was lifted out of the pod. Even with Gaster's words, she still expected him to begin to crumple like the man in the hallway. Instead, he began to float peacefully beside Gaster as he walked toward the exit of the room.

As she followed him, something dawned on her.

"You know who that is?" she asked.

"Yes, I do."

She waited, hoping he would say something else. When he didn't, she huffed and followed in silence and turned her attention back to Sans in her arms.

He was heavy, but not too much for her. She just wished he'd open his eyes. She placed a gentle kiss on his frontal bone and stepped closer to Gaster in case they were to get attacked again.

~LM~

They all made it out. As soon as they made it to Papyrus, he lowered his weapons and took Sans from Frisk's hold. She wanted to protest, but just the look on his face made her shut up. He seemed happy again, if not worried.

He gave another warning to the people in the room, stating that if anyone tried to stop them from leaving, they'd get a bone in the head. He demonstrated what he meant by sending a bone flying into the wall.

Alphys and Undyne met them out by the Jeep.

"Was there a two for one deal?" Undyne asked as they set the furry monster in the backseat of the vehicle.

"No," Gaster said seriously. He didn't comment further.

Alphys seemed agitated at seeing the extra passenger.

"Who is that?" Frisk asked as Papyrus gingerly placed Sans in the seat.

"Never mind who that is, what the hell's wrong with your eyes?" Undyne demanded.

"She touched his soul," Gaster explained.

Frisk wasn't sure how that was an explanation, but the other three seemed to understand something important.

"I don't get it. What happened?" She asked. "What is wrong with me?"

Undyne insisted then that they get the hell out of there. Frisk grunted with impatience and climbed in next to Sans. Why were so many questions going unanswered today?

She found herself looking over the unknown monster. If she looked at him a certain way, he looked like a goat. The thought made her smile. His hands were weird, she thought; three fingers ending in claws. Hmm; not very goat-like. She had to wonder if he was magical like Sans was; maybe that was why he was there to begin with. On his head, above his long ears, were two filed-down horns that she hadn't noticed before.

She tightened her hold on Sans and kissed his head. She really hoped he woke up soon.

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much for reading! Answers will be coming soon!


	20. Chapter 19

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Frisk sat in the chair next to Sans' bed, her eyes refusing to stay open. She'd never felt so horrible in her whole life, but she refused to leave his side.

Every single bone in her body ached like she had somehow bruised them all. Her stomach couldn't handle the smell of anything remotely like food, and her head pounded as if she'd downed ten shots of vodka the night before.

They had only been home for a few hours, but still the monsters all seemed keener on discussing the extra monster they found in the lab rather than explaining what had happened to her. She decided she didn't care; she would just wait patiently for Sans to wake up.

Gaster had used healing magic to heal the crack in Sans' sternum as best as he could. There would be a scar, and Gaster could only barely say he was okay with that. One, at least his son was alive. Two, the scar wouldn't be nearly as noticeable as his own.

Sans had begun breathing again after they'd laid him in bed and Gaster healed his bones. That was also when Frisk started to feel like her life force was being drained. She had already figured they had something to do with each other. She knew that whatever had happened to her was because she'd touched his soul, but she didn't regret a moment of it. She just hoped she'd been able to help, even if only a little.

She got up only when she needed to go to the bathroom. She stopped and looked at herself in the mirror. She was surprised by what she saw.

Her eyes, normally brown, were now blue. Their shape hadn't changed; they were still thin almonds surrounded by an oval face with plump cheeks that made her look more like a child than a grown woman. Her hair was dark brown and messy. She grabbed a brush and pulled it through the tangled mess. She noticed a patch on the top that had turned blue. The heck?

She yawned and leaned forward to inspect the patch of blue hair. It shimmered as if it was somehow still connected to Sans' magic. Huh.

"All this to save your boyfriend," she muttered to her reflection. She smiled ironically. "Don't gripe; you know you'd do it a million times over if it meant you got to keep him. You love the twerp." She laughed and shook her head. "I sure as hell do love him."

After another yawn, she did her business, washed her hands, and went back to Sans.

The first thing she noticed was that his eyes were open. She gasped and ran to the bed before she remembered that he was still very fragile. She had to be careful with him.

"What happened?" he asked groggily.

She sat down gingerly next to him and took his hand. "Do you remember anything?"

He shook his head, then stopped abruptly. "Actually yes." He was quiet for a minute. "How did you find me?"

She sniffled and wiped a tear from her face before she could answer him. "It wasn't just me. Your dad, Paps, Undyne, and Alphys were all there with me." She lifted his hand kissed the back of it. "They took your soul out of you, Sans." She was openly crying now. "I've never been so scared in my life."

He lifted a finger and wiped a tear off her cheek. "I'm okay now, baby."

She sniffled again and leaned down to kiss him. "I need to tell the others that you're awake."

He nodded and rested back as he let her walk away. He was going to have to do something about her soon. He sensed it the moment he became conscious again—his magic was killing her.

Frisk waited in the living room while each of the monsters took their turn with Sans. Not surprisingly, Gaster was the first to go in the room, followed closely by Papyrus. She smiled as she overheard Papyrus' overly-excited reenactment of the rescue.

Sans thought it was pretty cool that Papyrus had held back a second wave of guardsmen. Of course, Sans thought almost everything Papyrus did was cool. He made sure to let his brother know that, too. He also made sure to let his brother know that he owed a dollar to the swear jar.

"Please don't ever do anything so reckless again." Gaster placed a hand on his son's head.

Sans looked over at Gaster and smiled weakly. "I can't promise that, Dad. If those fucks didn't try to kill you, I wouldn't have done that."

Gaster thought about that for a second. "I suppose, if they had been aiming at you, I would have done the same thing."

Sans nodded. "I know you would have. And I would have tried to make you promise the same stupid thing about not being reckless. Aren't we a pair?"

Gaster huffed a half-laugh. "We sure are, my son."

Alphys and Undyne were next. Undyne's explanation of the rescue was far more violent and had Sans laughing so hard his ribs hurt. It didn't take much; his sternum still ached even after his father had healed him.

Frisk looked up when the monsters left the room. She wanted to get up and go back in to be near Sans again, but she wasn't sure her legs would be strong enough. The pain in her bones had gotten far worse; even sitting up hurt. Her soul ached to be near him. She decided the agony of walking would be worth it once she was near him. Maybe she could even lay next to him.

She winced as she stood up. Before she could even take a step, her vision turned blue and she collapsed.

"Frisk!" Alphys cried. She was at her friend's side in a moment. "Gaster, come here quickly!"

"What's going on?" Sans called out. He winced; it hurt. "Is she okay?"

"We need to get her in next to Sans," Gaster said quickly.

He picked her up with magic and carried her gingerly into the room.

Sans pushed himself up on his elbows. "What happened?"

"She collapsed. You need to get your magic out of her, Sans." Gaster laid her gently on the bed next to Sans. "Try to be careful. It will be a strain on you."

Sans looked up at his dad, scared. He was already weak to begin with. "Will it hurt her?"

Gaster looked down. He didn't want to tell his son it would probably hurt as badly coming out as it did going in. At least she was unconscious at the moment. "No more so than what she's been going through."

Sans nodded. "How do I do this?"

Gaster sat in the chair next to the bed. "It's nothing more than gathering your magic, but instead of pooling it from inside yourself, you're going to call it back to you. Human souls are almost always in their chest area. Put your hand there, and call."

Sans nodded again. "Okay." He put his hand on her chest, trying not to blush when he realized he was touching both of her breasts. He cleared his throat and reminded himself of his mission. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and imagined himself gathering magic from within Frisk.

Gaster watched proudly as Frisk began to glow light blue. The light amassed under Sans' hand and flowed up his arm and into him.

Immediately, Sans felt stronger. Once he was sure he'd gotten every bit of magic out of Frisk, he pulled his hand back and kissed her head.

"How long until she wakes up?" he asked, looking to Gaster.

Gaster wished he had a better answer. "I'm not sure. She's very strong, but she needs to heal." He looked down at his hands. "I'm not sure if my healing power would do her any good or if it would damage her more."

Sans nodded. "Let's not try it yet."

~LM~

The first thing Frisk was aware of was the soft, steady snoring of Sans next to her. She smiled to herself and opened her eyes, looking over at him.

His face was so close to her she could probably kiss him if she stretched just a little. His closed eyes and peaceful features made her eyes tear up. Her heart was happy to see him safe. His arm was around her middle, holding her tightly in his sleep. It was a nice reminder of how close they were even when she closed her eyes.

Except she had to get up. She kissed him gently and tried to pry his hand off of her.

Sans grunted and opened his eyes. He hadn't meant to fall asleep. Frisk's dark eyes smiling at him made his soul feel light again. He looked up, relieved that the strange blue streak was gone from her hair as well.

"Good morning," he said softly.

"Good morning." She kissed him again. "I need to get up for a second."

He shook his head and pulled her closer. "Nah. I need you to stay right here forever and never leave me again." He ducked his head and kissed her shoulder. "How are you feeling?"

She thought about that for a second before she could answer him. Her bones didn't hurt nearly as bad anymore. Her muscles felt strong again as well. "I think I'm okay."

"You really scared me, Frisk."

She made him look up at her and kissed him again. "I guess we freaked each other out."

He nodded. "I'm sorry I was so stupid, baby. I never meant—"

She put her fingers over his teeth to quiet him.

"It's all over now, Sans. You're safe, I'm still alive, and we're together. That's all that matters." She kissed him one more time. "What happened, anyway?"

"I sucked the poison out."

She pursed her lips. "Your magic isn't poison. Besides, that's not what I meant. What happened to me?"

"It actually is poison, to you. Humans aren't made to withstand magic, whereas monsters are literally made of magic. When you touched my soul, you absorbed some of my magic. It's what made you capable of putting down twenty soldiers. I'd say that was awesome if I didn't already know what would happen. Humans aren't supposed to be able to absorb magic, but then again it's not very often that one of you gets to touch a raw monster soul."

She gave him a quizzical look. "What do you mean we aren't supposed to absorb magic? How did I do it, then?"

Sans nuzzled her shoulder as he answered her. "The only times I've ever heard of it happening—a human touching a monster soul, I mean—was during the war. When a monster dies, our soul comes out of our body for a few seconds. Most humans that tried to capture the monster soul were killed instantly. Electrocuted to death. I think I've heard of two humans who didn't die instantly. I'm not sure why; I think it has something to do with their own souls and how they interact with monsters. But they were infected and died a day or two later." He kissed her shoulder and looked up at her. "The only way to get the magic out is to have the monster to whom it belongs get it out. A monster can't call back another monster's magic. If I had died, you would have as well."

Frisk didn't like that. "I'm not so sure I would have wanted to live without you anyway."

His brow bones furrowed, and he shook his head. "Don't say that Frisk. I mean it. You have your mom and MK to live for; they need you, too."

As he spoke, he let his hand begin travelling up and down her side. He stopped when he felt a lump in her pocket. He smirked.

"Is that something in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?"

Frisk snorted. "You're the one who can conjure a penis, you dork."

Sans reached in and pulled out the small box. He stared at it for a second before looking up to meet her eyes.

"I do," he said softly.

She looked down and stiffened when she saw the box. She had forgotten all about the contact lens.

"Oh, crap!" She grabbed it from him and got up, rushing out of the room before she could explain.

"Alphys!" she hollered as she looked around for the yellow monster. "Alphys, I need your help."

Sans stared after her, not sure what to think. The ring box in her pocket…had she been holding onto it for Alphys? He wanted to be thrilled for his two best friends, but why would Frisk have reacted so terribly at his misunderstanding? Did the idea of marrying him seem that bad? It had seemed like the most natural idea in the world to him. Perhaps it was better this way.

He shook his head at himself and slowly stood up. He obviously didn't have the whole picture. With a groan and stiff bones, he slipped on a shirt and made his way after Frisk.


	21. Chapter 20

A/N: Happy Easter, if you celebrate the holiday. Hope everyone has a great day!

* * *

CHAPTER TWENTY

"Will there be any damage?" Frisk asked as she used the small plunger-looking device to suck the contact out of her left eye.

"No, y-you should be completely f-fine," Alphys replied. She took the contact and put it back in the box. She flicked the switch to the 'off' position and closed it.

Frisk nodded and looked down at the box in Alphys' claws. She recalled how she first thought it looked like a ring box. Sans' words suddenly made sense.

"Oh, my gods," she whispered.

"What's wrong?"

"I think…oh, no." She turned to leave the bathroom, but stopped abruptly and turned back to her friend. "Thank you for everything, Alphys. I have to go apologize to Sans."

"Apologize for what?" Sans asked, standing outside the bathroom.

Frisk looked at him and smiled. She took the box back from Alphys. "This isn't what it looks like." She opened it and explained how everything worked. "But I think we still need to talk."

Sans nodded. He felt a hundred times better knowing that she hadn't run away from a proposal. He kissed her and pulled her into a hug.

Alphys smiled knowingly and stepped around the couple. She tried not to grin too hard as she walked up to Undyne.

"Why do you look like you just discovered Narnia was real?" Undyne asked loudly.

Alphys giggled. "Because I know something." She fidgeted with her claws for a moment, not sure if she should tell her girlfriend what was going on, but also not sure she could keep this secret for very long.

"Well, spit it out!"

"Undyne, it's a secret! I don't know if they want me to tell anyone. I don't even know if they know I know."

"Huh?" Undyne scratched her head, raising one side of her lip at Alphys. "Speak English, please?"

"That was English, my love." She snuggled into Undyne.

Undyne wrapped her arms around Alphys and picked her up in a tight hug. "I'll squeaky-toy it out of ya!"

Alphys laughed harder. "No!"

"Then tickle?"

"If you tickle me, I'll never tell you."

Undyne set Alphys down and scowled. "Party pooper."

Alphys held up the box. "What does this look like to you?"

"I dunno. A container?"

"If you were seeing this for the first time, what do you think it would have in it?" Alphys wished so hard that her friends would decide to tie the knot. She totally shipped them together and wanted to see her own fanfictions come true.

"A recording device, of course. You told me that's what it was."

Alphys sighed. Of course Undyne wouldn't think anything romantic about a box. That's not how she did romance. "A ring, Undyne."

"Why a ring?" Undyne really just wanted to know what secret her girlfriend knew. She knew Alphys was trying to give her hints, but she didn't do hints. Hints were annoying little bastards.

"Because it's usually how they come after you buy them. Sans found it in her pocket and thought she was going to propose to him!" She only knew that Sans had found it because Frisk had told her. She guessed at the other part, but it wasn't hard to put two and two together.

"Oh," Undyne said, dragging out the word. "So they're gettin' hitched! That's…weirdly awesome."

Alphys giggled. "No, babe! Frisk wasn't actually proposing. They have to talk, but what do you want to bet they decide to do it?"

Undyne laughed. "They sure as heck will! Sans loves that girl, and she just saved his damn life so she obviously loves him too."

Alphys sighed deeply. It was so romantic. As she turned to stand on her toes and ask for a kiss, the whole room was filled with the most awful scream.

~LM~

Gaster and Papyrus looked at the furry monster on the lab table for a moment. They had set up Papyrus' room as a temporary room for the monster until Gaster could get something else worked out. He didn't dare try to take him to the lab; it was probably already under surveillance.

"I can't believe this is real," Papyrus said softly.

"I know," Gaster sighed.

They weren't sure what to do. They only knew that they had done the right thing in taking the monster out of the facility, but now everything was going to change. It was up to them to figure out how to let that change happen.

If they let him go when he woke up—if, Gaster reminded himself; if he woke up—then there would be chaos on everyone's hands. If they tried to keep him in the house, would he fight back? It was likely that he hadn't seen another monster in centuries. Would he be scared? Angry? Would he lash out?

Gaster looked up when the door opened. Frisk and Sans walked in.

"Sans, what are you doing up?"

Sans shrugged. "I'm feeling a lot better after I got the rest of my magic back." He smiled at Frisk.

Frisk took his arm.

"I can even kind of use my magic." He held up his left hand and it burst into flame. He winced. It still hurt a little.

"Sans, you really should be more careful," Gaster chided. "You've only started healing."

The flame disappeared. "I know. I couldn't really believe what you guys were saying earlier about this other monster so I had to come see for myself. I remembered seeing him there, but I kind of thought I was making him up so I wouldn't feel so alone."

Frisk's heart hurt. She kissed his shoulder and leaned her head against him.

Sans smiled and kissed her head. "It's okay, Frisk. I wasn't there long, thanks to all of you."

"Regardless, you should still be resting," Gaster said. He walked over to them, arms spread, as he gently urged them to leave.

"Can I at least have a look at him?" Sans said. "I mean, if this really is—"

"Don't," Gaster snapped. "Don't say the name."

As far as he'd come trusting Frisk, he couldn't bear the thought of her finding out who was on the table in the room. There were too many possibilities if she knew; too many people she could tell.

Sans' brow bones furrowed. "Why?"

Gaster's eye lights snapped to Frisk. "Because I don't want word getting out that he's here."

Sans' bones stiffened. "You still don't trust her, even after she helped you save my life?"

"Do you really blame me, Sans?" Gaster tried again to shoo them out of the room. "I'm trying; I am. This is too big, my son."

Sans could understand that. He wanted Frisk to know that he trusted her implicitly, but he also knew where his dad was coming from. It didn't mean he thought his dad was right, though.

As they turned to leave, they heard an unfamiliar grunt.

Gaster turned around quickly to see the furry monster's hand raise up to his face. He grunted again.

"My gods…" Gaster breathed. Decisions they hadn't made yet swirled around in his head. They were out of time!

Gaster hurried over to Papyrus to grab his arm and lead him out of the room. Before they could make it a few feet, the monster sat up and shook his head.

"Where the hell…"

Frisk's soul shivered at the sound of his voice. It was low, calm, smooth…soothing.

"You're okay," Gaster said hesitantly.

The monster looked up slowly and froze when he saw Gaster. "Who the hell are you?"

Gaster tried to push Papyrus toward the door while still keeping the monster's attention on himself. He reached out a hand toward the table. "My name is Gaster. I'm a friend. You're safe here."

"Safe?" the monster replied. "I don't understand?"

His eyes followed the skeleton in the red sweater as he walked slowly toward the door. There was another skeleton and a…a human?

Sudden images invaded his brain. Humans were not nice. Humans hurt him. Humans took him from his parents and told him they were dead. Humans needed to die.

He roared as he shot up off the table. In an instant, a flash of light descended on Frisk. She felt hot for a second, then blinding light and electricity. She screamed.

But nothing happened. She opened her eyes to see a wall of bones and blue light around her. They disappeared, and Sans was standing in front of her. He raised his left arm, his hand engulfed in flame.

As soon as the threat was gone, Sans collapsed. He sat up on his knees. "I'm fine," he said. "I'm really fine."

He looked up at Frisk with a wide smile.

"Don't give me that look," she said unhappily. "You could have…I don't know."

She helped him stand up. Gaster was at his side as well.

Sans shot an angry look at the new monster. "Try anything against her again, Prince, and I'll fucking kill you," he growled.

"I'd like to see you try," the prince snarled.

Before he could aim an attack, two-tone bones and spears alike were aimed at him.

"This is enough," Gaster said uneasily. "Let's talk about this. Sans, please take Frisk somewhere else. You really need to rest. Papyrus and Undyne, please stop threatening our guest."

Sans nodded and took Frisk's hand. She tried not to help him as they walked back to the bedroom. They laid down together, and Sans sighed.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

He put his left hand over his sternum. "It hurts here," he confessed. "Pretty bad, actually."

Frisk nodded. "Gaster said it would take a while for your bones to heal." She lightly placed her hand over his.

"Yeah, but it's more than that. It's like it hurts in my soul; like I used too much energy."

She didn't like that. She leaned in and kissed his cheekbone. "Please don't do that again, then."

His browbones furrowed. "I sure as hell will if he threatens you like that again. Dad can heal me, he can't heal you."

Her lips pursed together tightly. "I don't know what the answer is, Sans. When he was healing you, he said something about you not having as much strength or stamina as before. I don't want you to get hurt, especially if it's because of me." She nuzzled against him, being sure not to hurt him.

Sans pulled her in closer and kissed her. "I don't know the answer, either. I think maybe Dad just needs to get that fucking prince out of here."

She looked at him. "Why do you call him a prince?"

He smiled. "Dad doesn't want you to know, but I say fuck that. He's literally a prince. THE prince, to be exact. He's Asriel."

Her eyes widened. The son of the king and queen? The only living Boss Monster left on their miserable planet?

"Asriel."


	22. Chapter 21

A/N: I'm so sorry these updates have been so erratic. I've been dealing with some mental health issues and trying to finish Bestiality (that hasn't helped anything in the mental health department, holy shit). Luckily, Bestiality is nearly finished and I'll have more time to focus on this story.

One person had suggested it might be Asgore that they rescued. Was anyone surprised it was Asriel? Any ideas about where Gaster might take Asriel? Yes, I'm totally asking questions to get you guys to leave your thoughts, lol. I'm guilty. Sorry?

Enjoy!

Oh! And I have a tumblr! Come join me and stuff. sheewolf85 dot tumblr dot com

* * *

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

"Frisk?"

"Are you okay?"

"Hey, punk! What happened?"

"F-Frisk! Wake up!"

Frisk's eyes suddenly opened as she gasped. She wasn't sure what exactly just happened, but she knew it was big. She looked around to see Sans, Papyrus, Alphys, and Undyne standing around her. She could hear Gaster talking softly in the background.

"What the hell?" she said groggily. She laid on Sans' bed, his hand wrapped around hers.

"You fainted, Frisk," he said worriedly. "Are you okay? Maybe I didn't get all of my magic? I thought I did. I'm so sorry!"

Frisk smiled and brought his hand to her lips. "I'm okay, Sans. And everyone else. I promise I'm okay."

She sat up slowly and squeezed Sans' hand again.

"We were very worried about you," Papyrus all but shouted. "You apparently fell unconscious after realizing our new friend is the prince."

"Paps!" Sans yelled. "So you go and tell her again?"

She laughed. "You told me the first time."

Sans gave her a look. "Yeah, but you deserve to know. I feel bad that my dad still doesn't trust you."

She nodded. "This is really big news. I mean, I could tell anyone and you'd have the entire military here, news crews, humans galore."

"Who would you tell? Honestly, Frisk."

She thought about that for a second. "Knowing the repercussions of me saying anything, I wouldn't tell anyone until you guys told me it was safe to do so."

Sans nodded. "Exactly. I knew that would be your answer. I trust you with my life."

She leaned in and kissed him. "I know."

Alphys clapped. "You two are just too cute together!"

"Yeah!" Undyne shouted. "When are you gettin' married?"

Alphys shot her a look. Undyne just grinned back.

Frisk looked at Sans and swallowed. They hadn't talked about that yet, although that was next on their list.

"I don't think that's a conversation we need to have with _everyone_ in the room," Sans said, looking directly at Undyne when he said 'everyone'.

"Did you already ask her?" Papyrus asked excitedly. "What did she say?"

Sans' cheeks suddenly turned blue. "Dammit, Paps." He hung his head down and tried to keep breathing.

"What? Oh, no! Did she say no?" Papyrus looked at Frisk. "Why don't you want to marry my brother?"

"No, no, Paps…I didn't ask yet."

"Oh." Papyrus shuffled slowly to the door, his face orange with embarrassment. "I think I left something somewhere." He left the room.

"Come on, Undyne. L-let's give the two l-lovebirds some space." Alphys took Undyne's hand and tugged lightly to lead her out of the room.

Once alone together, Frisk cleared her throat. "So you were going to ask me even before you found that box in my pocket?" she asked.

He nodded. "I was actually going to ask you last weekend at dinner with my dad."

She leaned in and kissed his still-blue cheekbone. "I will," she whispered.

"I haven't asked yet."

She snickered. "You better get on it, then."

He got up and got something out of the top drawer of his dresser. He cleared his throat before getting down on one knee before her.

"Frisk, I love you more than I thought it was possible to love someone. You've given me so much and ask for so little in return. I would be honored if I could call you my wife." He held out his hands and opened a small black box to reveal a ring with a small diamond nestled on top

Frisk could only nod. She was speechless. She watched as his bony fingers plucked the ring from the box and slipped it onto her finger.

"I love you," she finally whispered.

He pushed her back on the bed and crawled in to lay beside her. He took her hand kissed her knuckles. "The whole world is going to be changing soon. Once word gets out that a Boss Monster still exists, there might even be a new war. I don't know what's going to happen, but I want to get married as soon as possible so it can happen with us together."

Frisk nodded and curled herself against him. "I agree. I'm a little scared, but I'm also really hopeful. Is there any possible way the king and queen are still alive?"

Sans shrugged. "Possible, I guess, but really unlikely. I think they would have shown some kind of sign of life during the last war if they were still around."

Frisk figured that was probably true. "Do you think monsters will allow him to take the throne?"

He wasn't sure what to think about that for a second. Would he want to be ruled? "Not like it was before, no. But maybe having a new king would be a bad thing. I mean, this guy almost killed you simply because you're a human. A good king that does not make." He sighed. "On the other hand, he's a Boss Monster, so we might not have a choice."

"Why not?"

"Do you know why they're called Boss Monsters?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yeah, because they're the bosses."

Sans snorted. "Nope. Because they have more power in their magic than any other monsters. You know in games when you fight the final big bad enemy, it's called a boss. Humans literally named our royalty after enemies in games."

Her nose scrunched up. She didn't like that. "I vote we don't call him a Boss Monster, then. What if we just call him a Royal Monster?"

Her opinion caught him by surprise. He had expected her to feel something similar, but not to the point where she felt uncomfortable using the term. It made him love her even more. He couldn't help but pull her close and kiss her.

"I like that idea."

~LM~

"So, what happens now?" Asriel asked hesitantly.

Gaster took a step forward and slipped his hands into his pockets. "To be honest with you, I'm not sure. I'm sure you've figured out that you can't stay here. I'll find somewhere safe for you."

Asriel huffed. "There's nowhere safe. Do you…do you know if my parents are really dead? The humans told me they'd killed my parents."

Gaster shook his head sadly. "They haven't shown any signs of life in three centuries. That being said, I can tell you that the humans did not kill them. Had that happened, they would have flaunted it to the rest of the world in a very noticeable manner."

"So, there's a chance?" He didn't want to feel hopeful; hope led to more pain.

"A microscopic one, but yes." He wanted to lie to the prince, but there was no use in doing so. He deserved to know the truth.

Asriel looked down as he contemplated all that he'd learned in such a short amount of time. He had the hardest time wrapping his head around the fact that not all humans deserved to die. Regardless of whether that one had helped save him, he never wanted to see her again. The thought of a human under the same roof as he ever again made him angry.

"How soon can I leave?"

Gaster sucked in a deep breath. "As in on your own, or just this place?"

"Whichever gets me away from the human faster."

"In that case, we'll figure something out tomorrow. It's getting a little too late to do anything tonight. I apologize." Gaster raised a hand to rub his skull.

Asriel's eyes followed the other monster's bony fingers along the cracks in his skull. "What happened to you?"

Gaster let his fingers trail along the crack down to his right eyelid. "I was hurt by humans."

"And yet, you let your son become involved with one?" That made no sense.

Gaster smiled. "Actually, I didn't _let_ my son do anything. He makes his own choices. I can't say I agree with all of them, but Frisk has been…She was essential in the rescue of my son. And you, too, by extension. Had we not gone in to get him, we wouldn't have found you."

"How was she essential? It seems you have enough power to take down the whole place. I can feel it. Are you a Boss Monster?"

"No," he all but snapped. He shook his head and spoke softer. "Not anymore." He didn't want to think about that. "Frisk was essential in that she got us past a few points that neither Papyrus nor I could have gotten us past without further carnage. She helped me to put Sans' soul back in his body. Had she not touched it and absorbed some of his magic, it would have been too strong for me to manipulate it." He knew he could have figured it out, but it would have taken so much longer. "And because she absorbed some of his magic, she was able to put down the rest of the guards in the area, plus a few outside. That made it possible for us to spend the extra minutes it took to get you."

"How did it not kill her?" Asriel asked, stunned.

"She and Sans share a very special connection. That moment made me realize it. Not soulmates, exactly, but they were truly meant to know each other." He shook his head again, slowly. "I can't say I fully understand it, but I do know that only very special humans are able to touch and absorb raw monster magic, much less survive as long as she did with it in their bodies. I've no doubt that as things progress in their relationship, she'll build up a tolerance."

Asriel grimaced. "Are you saying they could have kids? Those would be some fugly kids."

Gaster laughed. "Yes, I imagine children are a part of their future." He'd accepted that fact when Sans talked about the possibility of marriage between the two.

"Dad."

Gaster looked up as Papyrus walked in. He tried to discreetly put himself in between Asriel and his son. "Yes, Papyrus?"

"Sans is still resting, but I'm tired. Will you read to me?"

Gaster smiled. "Of course, my son."

Papyrus realized that Asriel was still in his room. "Where will I sleep tonight?"

Gaster looked over at Asriel. "Do you mind sleeping on the couch tonight?"

Asriel shrugged. "Anywhere's bound to be better than that damn pod."

"You'll have your room, Son."

He gently pushed Papyrus back out of the room and had him help set Asriel up on the couch. Afterward, they said goodbye to Alphys and Undyne.

Frisk and Sans made an appearance just long enough to say goodbye and goodnight, then disappeared back into Sans' room.

Gaster figured that was for the best, so long as his son was actually resting. He didn't figure Frisk would let anything happen that could hurt—

He stopped that thought as he realized she had the ring on her finger. Ha! He found he was happy for the two of them.

Still, he knew that Frisk wouldn't let anything happen that could hurt Sans.

He read to Papyrus and smiled at his youngest son, curled in his racecar sheets. He was too cute. He placed a hand on Papyrus' head for a moment before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.


	23. Chapter 22

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

"No, please!"

Frisk woke up to a muffled cry. The bed was shaking slightly. She squeezed her eyes shut for a second, trying to wake up a little more.

"Don't hurt me!"

Sans was the one shaking the bed, she realized. His bones were rigid beside her, his fists clenched firmly in the sheets under him, and his eyes closed tightly. His mouth turned down in a grimace that hurt her entire soul to see. He was in pain.

She shook him gently. "Sans, wake up."

"Don't hurt me!" he cried out again.

Tears filled her eyes as she realized he was having a nightmare about what had happened to him. He must be so scared, trapped in that awful dream. She shook him harder.

"No, no, NO!" He bolted out of bed and fell to the ground clenching at his chest.

Frisk scrambled out of the sheets, her legs getting caught for a second before she was free. Sans sat on the floor next to the bed breathing heavily and clutching at his shirt over his sternum.

She fell to her knees beside him and framed his face with her hands. He flinched, but met her eyes with blue tears in his sockets.

"You're okay, Sans," she said softly. "It was just a dream, baby." She kissed him. "Just a dream."

Sans nodded. "I'm awake?"

She smiled at him. "Yes. Are you okay?"

He wasn't sure how to answer that. He thought so. "Maybe."

Frisk helped him back up on to the bed and let him curl into her. "It's gonna be okay, Sans. You'll see. It'll probably take a lot of time, but that's okay. You went through something awful, but I'm here to remind you that it's all over now." She kissed his skull and wished she could take all of his fear and pain away for him.

Sans looked over at her and smiled. "Thank you." He unfurled himself and pulled her into his embrace. "Thank you, Frisk."

She let him cling to her as long as he needed.

~LM~

Gaster stood outside the door and watched as the human comforted his son. He knew she loved Sans, but to see her so skillfully handle a flashback the way his wife used to do melted his stone heart. He couldn't find any other reason to not trust her.

He sighed as he turned away and went back to the living room. Asriel was on the couch, snoring peacefully. He knew the time would come that Asriel would have nightmares of his own. Who knew what would happen then. Gaster had been known to throw magical attacks in the midst of a flashback. He should probably warn Sans of that.

What a messed-up lot they were.

He couldn't sleep. He'd set himself up on the floor in the living room but couldn't bring himself to even lay down. The thought that Asriel could wake up and escape at literally any point during the night terrified him. Or, even worse, the prince could decide to kill everyone he felt was holding him hostage again. He couldn't allow his sons to be put in that kind of danger.

As soon as the sun rose, Gaster thought to himself, he would find a better hideout for Asriel. In the meantime, it wouldn't hurt to do some planning. He pulled out his phone and called the familiar number, stepping just far enough away that he could keep an eye on Asriel but not disturb him.

"Hello?" The voice on the other end was low and crackly.

Gaster smiled. "Good morning, Grillby. Did I wake you up?"

"Gaster? What on earth…? Are you okay?"

"I'm not sure how to answer that. Listen, I need your help. I know I can trust you, but before I tell you anything, you have to swear to me that you won't whisper or crackle or even sign to another soul anything you hear from me."

"O-okay. You do realize it's two in the morning, right?"

"Actually, I hadn't considered the time. I apologize. However, this requires immediate attention, and I could use your help."

Grillby sighed. "Fine. I swear I won't communicate anything to anyone. What's going on?"

"If you were to find a living, breathing Boss Monster, where would you hide them?"

Grillby laughed. "Okay, you're drunk. Goodnight, Gaster."

 _Click_.

That could have gone better. Instead of wasting his time trying to contact Grillby again, he decided to do some research with what limited supplies he had at his disposal. Luckily for him, Sans liked to have copies of his books at home in case he was too lazy to read at the lab.

~LM~

Asriel had never been more comfortable. Not in a very long time. Those long-ago memories felt more like dreams to him now. If he tried hard enough, he could almost feel the blankets on his bed. He had no recollection of the softness of the mattress. He knew it had been something he could sink into, but that kind of warmth had been denied him for a long time.

He didn't dare open his eyes. He knew it would all be a dream and he'd be back in that damn pod once he did. Instead, he drew in a breath and let himself snuggle a little deeper into whatever surface he was dreaming about. It was a miracle he could actually feel its softness.

There was something else. A scent he felt like he knew once upon a time. He wasn't sure how to place it. It was…sweet? He remembered sweet. There was something else there. He took another breath through his nose to smell it better. It was warm. Comfortable. Yet another scent…he wasn't sure what the other one was. It was almost spicy in a way he could barely remember. Not like the food he'd been forced to eat at the facility. It was real food, and it made his mouth water.

He opened his eyes, preferring to end the dream there. It wasn't fair for him to have such vivid dreams. He couldn't even remember the last time he'd had one that felt so real.

It took him a moment to realize he was still comfortable. In front of him was not a gray room with pods. There had been someone new. A skeleton that all the doctors seemed very interested in. He'd screamed…he'd screamed so loud and painful it had made Asriel cry. Bones broke. The screaming stopped as something glowed. A doctor groaned painfully and fell to the floor. The others panicked; he was dead.

Good riddance, Asriel had thought.

The glowing thing was put in a jar and sealed. The skeleton was sealed in the pod. Asriel had seen a lot of monsters come in throughout the years. None of them just left; they turned to dust before they were cleaned out of the pods. He had tried to talk to one of the doctors about what was going on, but as soon as he started talking they brought out that damn syringe again. He hated that thing. It was either pain or sleep, and that time it was sleep.

But no; he wasn't there. He was in a different place on a different surface. The fabric under him was brown and soft to the touch. Asriel ran a paw over it, taking in the smooth texture. In front of him was a box he didn't recognize with lights reflecting off it. In the blackness of the reflective surface, he could see the rest of the room. On the wall hung a clock, and there was a table next to a door.

"Good morning."

It was a familiar voice, but he couldn't place it. The speaker kept their voice low. Perhaps they weren't speaking to him.

"Good morning, babe."

Nope, not to him. The answering voice was a different kind of low; baritone.

"Shh," the first, far more feminine voice said. "You'll wake him up."

A deep chuckle. "It's about time he woke up, don'tcha think? I've never seen Dad sleep this late."

They weren't even talking about him. In the reflective surface, he caught a movement. Something stirred on the floor next to whatever he was on. A figure sat up and coughed.

"You could have been quiet," a third voice said. Perhaps belonging to the figure on the floor. "Don't wake Asriel."

A groan belonging to the second, deep voice. "Yeah, let's not wake him up. I don't like him."

A feminine laugh. "Only because he attacked me. Come on, Sans, I'm human; of course he tried to attack me. We should have been smarter about that."

Human.

Were the other voices human? Asriel's heart began to pound in his chest as he imagined how many humans were around him. Why was he here? Was he being lulled into a false sense of security so he'd tell them something about his soul? It had happened before. They'd given him ice cream on two different occasions to get him to talk about how magic was formed. He still didn't know; it just happened.

He could feel it now: The urge to destroy the humans around him before they could hurt him. He had to wait for the right time, he told himself. One of them was bound to come close to him, then he'd do it. He closed his eyes tightly and prepared his strongest attack.

"Holy shit!"

Footsteps running, getting close to him. A hand on him. He yelled and jumped up off whatever he was on.

He stopped instantly. He knew these faces. Especially the small skeleton. He'd been in the pod. He made himself calm down as the tall one with the cracked face approached him.

Gaster took slow steps as he put himself between Asriel and Sans. He wouldn't let anyone get hurt. The blaster that had been summoned was met with three of Sans' to accommodate for its enormous size. It barely fit in the living room.

"Dad, don't be stupid," Sans said, pushing Frisk behind him a little more. The irony was lost on him.

"Listen, Asriel, we mean you no harm."

Asriel nodded. "I know; I'm sorry, I was disoriented."

Gaster could understand that. "Will you please put your blaster away?"

"My what?" He looked in the corner where Gaster was staring and nearly jumped out of his skin when he was face-to-face with what looked like a gigantic goat's head floating in midair.

Sans was not happy about that. The guy didn't know how to use his own damn weapons? "Just will it away," he said. "Like this." His own blasters disappeared.

Frisk wasn't sure what to think about Sans' protection being gone. She was all for peace, but with that weapon still in the room she felt very unsafe. She reached out and grabbed his arm.

Sans shifted and moved her hands to his right arm, just in case he needed to use his left. Before he turned back, he kissed her head and whispered to her that she would be okay. He felt her nod against his shoulder.

"I…I don't know how to do that. I'm sorry."

Gaster looked back at Sans. "I don't have one of those, Sans. I don't know how to explain this to him." He hated this. He would rather relay information so that his son didn't have to get closer to the Boss Monster, but he didn't have much choice.

Sans nodded. "'Sokay, Dad. Frisk, I need you to let me go. Go stand by Dad."

Frisk wasn't sure about that. She knew Gaster didn't like her, so why wouldn't he let her get hurt? No, she knew why he wouldn't let her get hurt. He wouldn't hurt his son like that. Feeling better about it, she let go and all but ran to Gaster's side. Surprisingly, he put his arm around her shoulders. She felt safe again.

After Frisk was safe with his dad, Sans took a few steps toward Asriel. "Do you remember how you summoned it?" he asked.

Asriel nodded. "I was confused; I thought I was in danger."

"That's okay. But you want to do the opposite now. You really are safe here. You're with friends, and we want to help you. Tell yourself and your magic that you're safe."

Asriel nodded again. "Okay." He closed his eyes and concentrated on feeling safe. He could practically feel the relief in the room. He opened his eyes and looked to find that the skull was gone. Thank the gods.

"Good job, Prince. We were never actually introduced. I'm Sans. Sans the skeleton." He held out his hand.

Asriel hesitated. "People only do that when they're going to hurt me."

Sans put his hand down. "Then we won't shake." He gestured over to Frisk. "That's Frisk. She's human, but she's my fiancée and you're not allowed to hurt her. She won't hurt you; that's a promise."

Asriel frowned. "I'm gonna have to ask that she stays away from me. I'll do my best, but I don't feel comfortable with her in this room."

Sans nodded. "I'm fine with that." He was all for keeping Frisk the hell away from Asriel. He went back over to Frisk and took her hand. They went into the kitchen to try to salvage what they could of breakfast. Most of the vegetables had burned, so he tossed them and started over.

"How are you?" Frisk asked.

Sans smiled at her. "Better. I'm sorry I scared you last night."

She shook her head. "Don't apologize for that. There's bound to be more and don't think for one single second that you're putting a burden on me because you're not. PTSD is something we'll deal with together, just like the changes that are about to happen around us." She leaned her hip against the counter as he cracked some eggs. "How are you feeling after using your magic in the living room?"

He shrugged one shoulder. "Not too bad. My soul feels a little weak, but nothing serious." He stirred the eggs up before pouring them in the pan.

They were both silent as Frisk watched Sans cook. They both listened to the conversation taking place in the other room.

"You said you'd find somewhere else for me to go today," Asriel said with an air of accusation.

Gaster nodded. "And we will, but this has to be done in secret. We can't just walk around until we find a suitable place. I know someone who can help us, but it'll take some convincing. Please, just give me patience."

Asriel sighed. "I suppose."

"You know that if you're caught again, you'll be killed. They won't bother trying to take you back even if you are the only Boss Monster left."

"How are you not?" Asriel asked. "I mean, I can feel how strong you are. Your magic is probably as strong as mine."

Gaster snorted. "Once upon a time, yes, but it does no good to live in the past."

Sans and Frisk looked at each other with wide eyes.

"What?" Frisk mouthed.

Sans shrugged. "No way."

They stayed silent, hoping to get more information.

"I don't think it is in the past. I wouldn't be able to feel magic you once possessed. You have it now." Asriel stood up and stepped closer to Gaster. "And when can I get clothes?"

Gaster sighed in relief. "As soon as possible. I'll ask Papyrus to help me with your measurements and get something made as soon as he's up."

Asriel nodded. "Good. Thank you." He sniffed the air. "Something smells really good."

"Sans is a better cook than he lets on. He got the talent from his mother, I'm sure."

"'Salmost done," Sans hollered. He looked at Frisk with a grin. "So, Dad, what's this I hear about you being a Boss Monster?"

Frisk frowned. "Royal Monster?"

Sans leaned in and kissed her.

Gaster flinched internally and walked the short distance to the kitchen. "I'm not."

"Butcha useta be. How come I never knew?"

Gaster put his hand to his face and shook his head. "I swear to all that is holy, Sans Gaster, you have a Doctorate degree. Why do you choose to speak like that?"

Frisk looked at Sans, eyebrows furrowed. "Excuse me? My husband-to-be is a doctor and I didn't know about this?"

Sans smiled sheepishly. "It never came up."

"Oh, it came up plenty of times; you just never told me. Doctor Sans. That's very sexy," she grinned.

"Dear Gods," Gaster groaned.

"And why did you call him Sans Gaster?"

Gaster gestured to his son. "I'll let you explain name dynamics. I have other things to deal with." He turned and left the room.

Sans really wanted to learn more about his dad's status as a former Royal Monster, but he supposed now wasn't the time. He looked at Frisk. "My last name isn't Skeleton, you know. I just introduce myself that way sometimes. Dad is W.D. Gaster. I can't tell you what W.D. stands for until we're married, because then if you laugh I can divorce you."

She was almost sure he wasn't joking. "So, you trust me enough to tell me about a Royal Monster being alive, but not enough to tell me your dad's first name?"

He nodded. "That's about right." He kissed her. "Nah, I'm jokin', babe. I trust you, but he's real sensitive about it so I don't usually tell anyone. I won't tell you when other people are in earshot."

She could understand that. "So, when we're married, I'll be Frisk Gaster." She thought about that for a second. "I'm not sure how I feel about that."

Sans laughed. "Neither is Dad, but that's life. You don't have to change your name, y'know."

"I know." She started gathering plates and silverware as he turned the stove off. "I'll go get Paps. I doubt Asriel will want to eat with me anywhere near."

Sans caught her arm before she could leave. "Then you and I will eat in my room and they can deal out here." He pulled her close and kissed her again.

Frisk smiled. "Okay."


End file.
